Railways, power plants set to revive sukuk sales

Malaysian companies building railways and power plants under Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s US$444 billion (RM2 trillion) development programme will help revive sukuk sales from the slowest quarter since 2010. Corporate issuance could rise to as much as RM60 billion for the full year, said Mohd Effendi Abdullah, head of Islamic markets at Kuala Lumpur-based AmInvestment Bank. More Shariah-compliant bond sales are likely to be announced once the United States goes ahead with an expected interest-rate increase, removing an uncertainty that’s stifled issuance, said Effendi.