Bahrain is planning to return to the dollar bond market, according to people familiar with the matter, as the country faces one of the world's biggest budget deficits this year, Bloomberg website stated.

Bahrain's government has raised its debt ceiling to 15 billion dinars ($39.79 billion) from 13 billion dinars to help finance public spending, the cabinet said Monday, as low oil prices and the coronavirus crisis have dented state revenues.

Fitch cut Bahrain's sovereign rating one step to B+, leaving it four levels below investment grade and on par with Egypt, Bolivia and Jamaica. The outlook is stable.

Sukuk issuance by Gulf sovereign borrowers is expected to rise to around $34 billion this year, from $25 billion in 2019, as funding needs rise as a result of lower oil prices and the coronavirus crisis, Moody's said.

Countries of the energy-rich Gulf are expected to accumulate $490 billion in deficits by 2023 due to the double hit of low oil prices and the coronavirus slowdown, Standard and Poors said in a report.

Bahrain will need to attract additional capital this year, including through borrowing to sustain its currency peg, after a huge drop in foreign reserves due to low oil prices, ratings agency Moody's said.

McLaren is poised to secure a loan from the National Bank of Bahrain to solve its cash-flow problems, news websites have learned.

The government has agreed to pump an additional BD177 million ($470.7 million) into this year's budget to deal with the emergency expenditures incurred by the country as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic.

The Coronavirus pandemic consequences and oil price collapse have increased financial pressures on the Government of Bahrain, which prompted it to borrow three times this year.

Bahrain's fiscal deficit is seen widening to 12% of GDP this year from 4.6% in 2019, largely due to lower oil prices, S&P Global Ratings said on Saturday.

Instances of Saudi bullying against Bahrain are increasing. After it was recently revealed that the Saudi authorities do not allow Bahrain to conduct any surveys in the northern and western Gulf of Bahrain.

The Coronavirus pandemic and collapse of oil prices have had major effects on Bahrain's finances, but what is not acceptable is that the government compensates for its losses by taking from the citizens' pockets as Saudi Arabia has done.

Recent developments have severely damaged the government's fiscal balance program in partnership with three Gulf supporters. It seems that Bahrain needs to prepare a new program to rebalance the country's finances.

Bahrain has hired banks for a potential dual-tranche dollar bond issue, banking sources said, as the junk-rated Gulf oil producer seeks to raise cash amid the new coronavirus outbreak and historically low oil prices.

Bahrain sold $2 billion in a dual-tranche bond issuance comprising 4-1/2-year sukuk, or Islamic bonds, and 10-year conventional bonds, a document showed on Thursday.

Bahrain may need more financial aid from fellow Gulf Arab states as soon as this year but its wealthier neighbours could themselves be hamstrung by low oil prices and the economic impact of the new coronavirus, bankers and analysts said.

Last month, Bahrain borrowed $1.25 billion (BD470 million) to pay bonds due by the end of March.

Sources in the Ministry of Finance and National Economy said that Bahrain has asked the Gulf States to move closer date for planned aid package as part of the financial balance program.

Bahrain secured a loan of about $1 billion to repay a bond that was due at the end of March, three sources familiar with the matter said, after the Gulf state suspended plans to issue international debt due to bad market conditions.

Bahrain has launched a public fundraising campaign to help ease pressure on the finances of the country, which is facing increasing difficulties with slow production and ongoing drop in oil prices.