By Reuters
Qatar is planning to issue sukuk, for the first time in
nearly a decade, as it seeks to take advantage of global
demand for safe havens and Sharia-compliant assets amid
market uncertainty.
Qatar has mandated banks for investor meetings in Kuala
Lumpur and Singapore starting on Monday, arranging banks
said yesterday, and a dollar-denominated sukuk issue may
follow subject to market conditions.
The world's top liquefied natural gas exporter last tapped
debt markets with a $5 billion conventional multi-tranche
deal in November, but it has not issued a sukuk since
2003.
"Qatar is an extremely well-known name in the bond market,
and its existing bonds are very liquid and trade
frequently, so appetite, particularly from international
investors for Qatari paper is huge," said National Bank of
Abu Dhabi head of the markets strategy unit Chavan
Bhogaita.
"In addition, the rarity value of having sukuk paper from
a blue-chip issuer such as Qatar sovereign will certainly
help to ensure a very healthy order book."
The AA-rated borrower is looking to tap solid demand from
abundant Islamic and non-Islamic liquidity in the wake of
successful recent deals from the region.
Earlier this week, Emirates Islamic Bank, a unit of
Dubai's largest bank, received $5bn in orders for a $500
million sukuk. About 30 per cent of the deal was allocated
to Asian accounts.
And last week, deals from the Bahrain government and
Dubai's Majid Al Futtaim Holding were substantially
oversubscribed, and tellingly, indicated a growing
international bid for regional debt.
Qatar has hired HSBC Holdings, Deutsche Bank, Standard Chartered and local lenders Barwa Bank and QInvest to arrange the investor meetings. Plans for a sukuk were announced on the same day that London's latest, and most glitzy, skyscraper, the Shard, in which Qatar is a majority investor, opened.