International #Sukuk Issuance volumes expected to grow in coming years - Fitch

According to Fitch Ratings, international sukuk issuance from major Islamic finance markets were almost unchanged in the first nine months of 2019 year-on-year (y-o-y). Sukuk issuance with a maturity of more than 18 months from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region, Malaysia, Indonesia, Turkey and Pakistan totalled US$30.6 billion in 9M19 compared with US$31 billion in 9M18. This supports the view that volumes normalised rather than declined last year after hitting record levels in 2017. Fitch said that GCC debt markets are still relatively developing, and individual sovereign funding decisions can profoundly affect total supply. Fitch believes that new issuance volumes in the coming years will also be supported by refinancing activity. Nearly two-thirds of the US$99.4 billion of outstanding Fitch-rated sukuk at end-1H19 mature in less than five years.