| [Gulf Times] Qatar Islamic Bank’s planned sale of Islamic bonds may benefit from the government’s backing of local banks ahead of the World Cup in 2022, helping keep yields near the sovereign benchmark rate. QIB will sell sukuk maturing in more than five years to repay debt. The yield on the bank’s 3.856% bond due October 2015 dropped 26 basis points this month to 3.1% yesterday and reached a record low 3.06% May 11, prices compiled by Bloomberg show. The government’s 4% non-Islamic dollar bond due in January 2015 yields 2.47%, the lowest on record. “Qatar Islamic ticks all the boxes,” said Schroder Investment Management Ltd, which oversees about $230bn of investments worldwide. “It’s investment grade and it’s a bank in Qatar, which means that it enjoys government support. I don’t expect too much premium on the pricing, I expect it to be close to the sovereign pricing.” Demand for Gulf sukuk from investors in Asia including Malaysia, will help sales, according to HwangDBS Investment Management. “We are positive on sukuk, so we will consider buying Qatar Islamic Bank,” she said. “It is investment grade and there is also a supply and demand issue.” |
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