IslamicFinance.de

The share of sukuk issuance in core markets such as the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region, Malaysia, Indonesia, Turkey and Pakistan are expected to keep up their market share in 2017. New sukuk issuance from the core markets rose to $40 billion (Dh147 billion) in 2016 from about $32 billion a year earlier. This represented 28.5% of total bond and sukuk issuance in these markets in 2016, down marginally from 29% in 2015. Malaysian companies continue to be the most active corporate issuers. Several other key markets have introduced or updated sukuk laws in the past few years, including Saudi Arabia, Oman and Kuwait, which should gradually boost issuance. According to Faisal Hasan, Head of Investment Research at Kamco, the outlook for sukuk issuance in 2017 remains positive as GCC economies are expected to return to issuing sukuks to fund their deficits. Analysts say GCC corporates that tap capital markets are more likely to issue sukuk or a mixture of both, rather than only bonds to attract a wider local and regional investor base.