IslamicFinance.de

Asian sukuk offerings are drawing more demand from the Middle East, boding well for regional hubs such as Hong Kong as they try to raise their profiles in the Islamic finance market. When the Government of Hong Kong issued a $1bn five-year sukuk last week, 42% was allocated to the Middle East, up from 36% for the borrower's debut Islamic bond last September. Middle-Eastern buyers also snapped up 56% of a five-year $500 million offering by Indonesian airline Garuda Indonesia. The momentum in Asian sukuk offerings is raising hopes that Hong Kong will be able to achieve its goal of stimulating more Islamic issuance from the city. Alexi Chan, HSBC's global co-head of debt capital markets believes the time is right for issuers from Greater China to consider the sukuk market as a viable option in a diversified funding approach.