Cairo – Decypha: The aggregate primary issuance of bonds and sukuk by GCC entities has reached a total of $167.54 billion in 2016, a 41.2% hike in comparison to a year earlier, according to a report by Kuwait Financial Centre.
Saudi Arabia is believed to be the lead issuer in the GCC during 2016.
These figures include all Central Banks Local Issuances (CBLI), GCC Sovereign and Corporate Issuances.
The main reason behind the significant increase is believed to be sovereign issues by GCC governments, which was in response to the low oil prices.
GCC central banks have raised a total of $65.104 billion in 2016, with the Central Bank of Kuwait representing the lion’s share with $37.134 billion, representing 57.04% of the total amount raised by CBLIs through 65 issuances. Other banks leading the industry in this line include the Central Banks of Bahrain, Qatar, and Oman.
By Decypha News Team
