Sukuk sales set for recovery

Manama: The Gulf Arab Islamic bond market is likely to recover from the global credit crunch by April as companies get used to higher borrowing costs after a summer of turmoil that largely killed off sales, a Reuters poll showed.

Ten of the 11 bankers and analysts polled by Reuters said the value of sukuk, waiting to come to market by June 30 next year was worth at least $10 billion.

"Sukuk as an asset class is going to continue to grow," HSBC's managing director for Middle East Capital Markets Declan Hegarty said.