Sharjah lists $200m sukuk on Nasdaq Dubai

On Thursday, March 19, Sharjah listed a $200m sukuk on Nasdaq Dubai, taking the total value of sukuk listed in Dubai to $67.06bn, reported official news agency WAM.

Sharjah made two major sukuk listing on the exchange last year.

It included a $1bn sukuk in April 2019, and another $750m sukuk listing in October.

In February, S&P downgraded its credit rating for Sharjah from BBB+ to BBB citing increased debt and interest expenses burden.

It said weak economic conditions in the third largest emirate since 2019 have led to “decreased government revenue from government-related entities and land sales”.

The agency also said “increased government grants and land compensation payments, as well as accelerated payments to contractors, has resulted in a wider-than-anticipated deficit.”

As for the overall sukuk listing on Nasdaq Dubai, in 2020 alone there has been $2.9bn listed on the exchange.

The single-biggest sukuk listing this year was the $2bn listed by Saudi Arabia-headquartered lender Islamic Development Bank on the exchange in March.

Read: Saudi Arabia’s Islamic Development bank lists $2bn sukuk on Nasdaq Dubai

In 2019, there was a total $14.15bn of sukuk listed on the exchange, an 18 per cent year-on-year increase from $11.99bn in 2018.

A total of 44 percent of Nasdaq Dubai’s sukuk listings by value are from UAE issuers, with 56 per cent from overseas issuers.

Global sukuk issuance increased to $162bn in 2019, up 26 per cent from $129bn in 2018, reported Standard & Poor’s.