Vietnam yesterday raised $750m with its debut government bond offering and opened a gateway for the communist-ruled country's entry into the international financial markets.

Demand was so strong for the dollar-denominated bond - which got the go-ahead after nearly 10 years of internal deliberation - that the government managed to raise funds more cheaply than expected, in spite of recent volatility in the bond markets. Investors put in orders totalling $4.5bn, six times the amount on offer.