Issuance of second Samurai bond to be finalised soon

KUALA LUMPUR: The government is expected to conclude talks on the second Samurai bond in the first quarter of next year, according to Finance Deputy Minister Datuk Amiruddin Hamzah (pic).

“We are still looking into it. Most probably by the first quarter of next year, it can be finalised. The discussion is still ongoing.

“The government is trying to get the best rate which we hope will be much lower from the first Samurai bond,” he told reporters after opening the Malaysian Bond and Sukuk Conference 2019 here yesterday.

Earlier in his speech, Amiruddin said Malaysia has remained as the main driver for the sukuk market, while continuing to lead in the Islamic wealth management industry.

“Corporate bonds showed a stabilising pattern, with the total hovering between Rm85bil and Rm125bil in the last five years, at an average of Rm99bil annually.

“Total corporate sukuk as a percentage of total corporate bonds issued remained high, between 67% and 80%,” he added.

He said government sukuk had also been maintained between Rm45bil and Rm64bil.

“Outstanding bonds and sukuk are valued at Rm1,498bil at third quarter of 2019, and this underscores the fact that the Malaysian market continues to be an attractive investment destination for sukuk investors.”

Amiruddin further noted that for years, sukuk had experienced high demand from Islamic investors as well as from conventional investors in various major markets.

“Sukuk issuance from Malaysia grew from U$13.5bil in 2014 to Us$22.5bil in 2019 to date with an average growth of 11.4% per annum versus 13% per annum for global sukuk in total.