DUBAI -The issuance of Islamic bonds, or sukuk, is
expected to rise in the Gulf region next year as confidence returns to
capital markets, a senior executive at Japanese investment bank Nomura
told Al Arabiya TV Saturday. "We believe that we will see many issuances of either sukuk
or bonds in the next 18 months, especially in Saudi Arabia and Abu
Dhabi," Mohamed Idriss, Nomura's head of global markets for the Middle
East and North Africa, told Al Arabiya television. "Particularly in the
energy and transportation sectors."
Corporate and sovereign bond issuers in the energy-exporting
Gulf region have raised over $14 billion in bonds this year amid rising
interest from investors for high-rated bonds and banks reluctance to
lend.
Total global sukuk issuance stood at $13.5 billion at the
end of September, more than $1.8 billion of which were sold by power
and utilities companies worldwide followed by $1.5 billion from oil and
gas, data from Zawya's Sukuk Monitor shows.
Primary sukuk issued out of the Middle East and North Africa
region accounted for 59% of total volume of global sukuk this quarter.
Saudi Arabia topped the list of countries of origin, enjoying 44% of the total volume, according to Zawya data.