DUBAI, (Reuters) – Middle East and foreign companies looking to attract Arab investors may sell as much as $10 billion worth of Islamic bonds, or sukuk, during the next month, said Deutsche Bank, which is arranging many of the sales.
“We are expecting $10 billion of sukuk to come to market by July 15,” Geert Bossuyt, head of Middle East structuring, told Reuters in Dubai.
Deutsche Bank is arranging the majority of the bond sales, he said, declining to be more specific or identify any of the sellers.
The $10 billion figure excludes Dubai Ports World, which is looking to sell Islamic bonds, Bossuyt said.
Dubai’s DP World may borrow as much as $5 billion, including through the sale of sukuk, ratings company Standard & Poor’s said in a statement on Monday.
Bossuyt said global sales of sukuk may more than double this year to $50 billion from $20 billion in 2006 as companies seek to diversify their sources of funding and as more banks offer the service.
On average, the fees banks charge for arranging Islamic bond sales have fallen by half from the level a year ago as competition has mounted and the volume of sales has increased, Bossuyt said.
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