Fitch Ratings (Fitch) has revised the Outlook on Turkey’s Long-Term Issuer Default Ratings (IDR) to Negative from Stable, while affirming the IDRs at BB-.  The outlook revision was driven by falling gross foreign exchange reserves, fragile credibility of monetary policy, a sharp fall in interest rates as well as a deterioration of current account balance partially powered by a robust credit stimulus, which have worsened external financing risks. Furthermore, Fitch stated that there was increased risk that policy is not tightened enough,...

President of the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI), Mian Anjum Nisar encouraged the Government of Pakistan to take a proactive role in expanding the country's domestic Halal export capabilities in the global market. Nisar was among several industry leaders who spoke at the recent webinar on the "Halal Industry in Pakistan: Potential and Challenges". Currently, the Halal export market is expanding more rapidly in non-Muslim countries, Nisar pointed out, due to their superior practices in safety, reliability, hygiene and nutrition. &...

Head of the Institute of Standards and Industrial Research of Iran (ISIRI; Iranian governmental institution for standardisation and certification), Nayereh Pirouzbakht projected that the number of Halal certificates issued during the Iranian calendar year ending on March 2021 would be increased to 50, up from 45 issued certificates in the year ended March 2020. The move is in line with Iran’s export promotions, Pirouzbakht stated, as key markets such as Russia, Armenia, and Uzbekistan now request Halal certificati...

According to local media reports, the issuances of Sukuk and corporate bonds in Indonesia have risen at the start of the second half of the year (2H 2020), based on statistics released by the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX).  According to a press release issued on the 19th of August 2020 by Yulianto Aji Sadono, Corporate Secretary of the IDX, a total of 56 issuances comprising both corporate bonds and Sukuk from 40 listed companies worth IDR 43.81 trillion, have been recorded throughout 2020 so far.  Out of this, a total of IDR 31.25 trillio...

Determinants of Islamic Banks Liquidity and Lessons for Vietnam BanksIslam, Islamic banking, PLS, Shariah, Sukuk, Reserves

The Development of Sovereign Sukuk in IndonesiaIslam, Shariah, Sukuk, Participation

Speaking at a webinar titled ‘Reimagining the Future of Indonesia’s Economy’, on the 19th of August 2020, Prudential Indonesia’s President Director, Jens Reisch, announced plans to expand further into Indonesia’s Shariah-based insurance market. Reisch stated that this expansion was supported by growing demand for Shariah-based insurance products and services, adding that the nature of Shariah-compliant products made it suitable for everyone. Reisch noted that Indonesia lagged behind other countries with regards to Sha...

RAM Ratings (RAM) has reaffirmed the CIMB Group Holdings’ (CIMB Group) long-term corporate credit corporate ratings (CCR) at AA1/Stable/P1, as well as the long-term financial institution ratings (FIR) of its Malaysian banking subsidiaries, which includes CIMB Bank, CIMB Islamic Bank and CIMB Investment Bank, at AAA/Stable/P1.  At the same time, the ratings of CIMB’s debt/Sukuk facilities were also reaffirmed by RAM. With regard to Islamic bonds, CIMB Islamic Bank’s MYR 10.0 billion Sukuk Wakalah Programme (2017/-) was reaffirmed at AAA/Stable,...

The Government of Bangladesh has received a record USD 1.98 billion in foreign loans in June 2020, with a total of USD 7.27 billion received from donor countries and agencies in the fiscal year ending June 2020 (FY 2019-20), reflecting 17.2% year-on-year growth. Over half the amount, or USD 3.76 billion in foreign loans was received in the last four months of FY 2019-20 following the first detected cases of COVID-19 in the country, according to local media reports.  According to Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal, the Government applied for loan a...

The economies of all Arab countries are likely to decline in 2020, apart from Egypt’s, which is projected to grow by 2% in 2020, according to the Arab Monetary Fund (AMF), in its latest Arab Economic Outlook Report.  The AMF reported that the gross domestic product (GDP) of Arab countries is expected to shrink by nearly 4.0% in 2020, with Arab oil exporters facing a decline of 4.7%. Meanwhile, Arab economies that are more diversified are expected to shrink by 2.0% in 2020. The declines in GDP were attributed to challeng...