(Bloomberg) -- Traders are preparing for a spike in borrowing from Persian Gulf nations as the region's oil exporters seek financing to build costly bypasses around the Strait of Hormuz. Bond sales from the region are at a record $112 billion this year, data compiled by Bloomberg shows. "We have clearly seen interest to diversify from using the Strait of Hormuz," said Sergei Strigo, head of emerging-markets fixed income at Amundi SA, Europe's largest bond investor. "There are very significant foreign-exchange reserves that underpin the financial stability of these Gulf countries," he said. Even Bahrain, with a lower credit rating than its neighbors, raised $1 billion just after the war started, underscoring investors' appetite for Middle East debt.