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| Islamic Assets To Grow 15-20 Percent Globally |
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| Written by Administrator | |
| Sunday, 21 October 2007 | |
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Islamic assets worldwide estimated to be worth over US$1 trillion (US$1=RM3.36) currently are projected to grow 15-20 percent annually, Deputy Minister of Finance Datuk Dr Awang Adek Hussin said Friday. "The potential for sukuk financing is tremendous. Over the next five years, Asia is expected to spend US$1 trillion, while the requirement in the Middle East are estimated to be US$500 billion over the same period," he said at a seminar here entitled "Islamic Finance-Alternative Financial Instruments In Global Finance." The global significance of Islamic finance has grown considerably and is now practised in over 75 countries, Dr Awang Adek said. He said the growth was being driven by growing demand for syariah compliant financial services and transactions worldwide. KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 19 (Bernama) -- Islamic assets worldwide estimated to be worth over US$1 trillion (US$1=RM3.36) currently are projected to grow 15-20 percent annually, Deputy Minister of Finance Datuk Dr Awang Adek Hussin said Friday. "The potential for sukuk financing is tremendous. Over the next five years, Asia is expected to spend US$1 trillion, while the requirement in the Middle East are estimated to be US$500 billion over the same period," he said at a seminar here entitled "Islamic Finance-Alternative Financial Instruments In Global Finance." The global significance of Islamic finance has grown considerably and is now practised in over 75 countries, Dr Awang Adek said. He said the growth was being driven by growing demand for syariah compliant financial services and transactions worldwide. Syariah-compliant assets of Islamic banks and Islamic window-based conventional banks have exceeded US$500 billion. The market capitalisation of the Dow Jones Islamic Index is now over US$10 trillion while the aggregate issuance of Islamic sovereign and private debt sukuk has surpassed the US$50 billion mark. "In the midst of rapid development in the international Islamic financial markets, players are also looking towards building greater intermediation and linkages between Asia and Middle East regions," Dr Awang Adek said. This will expand inter-regional trade and cross border investments for mutual benefits and generate demand for financial instruments that conform to Islamic laws. "Malaysia continues to play a significant role in the Islamic world at both the political and business levels," he said adding that the private sector will play its role in shaping the international direction and growth. "We are one of the earliest to recognise the potential to create a financial system compatible with Islamic principles that provides an alternative to the conventional system," he said. As at end June 2007, the country's Islamic banking assets ammounted to RM143 billion. Islamic deposits totaled RM107.5 billion and Islamic financing R81.5 billion, he said. "Takaful assets totalled RM7.6 billion or 6.2 percent of total assets of the insurance industry as at mid-June 2007," he said. He said Hong Kong was also planning to develop an Islamic bond market, seeking to tap Middle-Eastern and other Islamic investors eyeing opportunities in China. He said the Japan Bank for International Cooperation also planned to issue ringgit denominated sukuk soon, which would mark the first sovereign Islamic issue by a member of the Group of Eight (G8) leading industrial nations. Source - BERNAMA |
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