309.4 billion dollars

The issues of sukuk and existing bonds in the UAE increased by 8.3% on an annual basis, to reach 309.4 billion dollars at the end of the first quarter of 2025, according to the “Fitch” credit rating agency.

“The debt markets in the UAE are continuing to achieve strong growth.

He added that this growth reflects the expansion of the financial scene of the state and its strategic location in the sukuk market, as the sukuk share reached 20.2% of the total existing publications in the Emirates, while the bonds constituted the remaining percentage.

He explained that at the level of new versions, the issues of the sukuk in the UAE amounted to $ 4.9 billion, during the first quarter of this year, which represents twice the value of the issues in the fourth quarter of 2024, while bond versions amounted to 24.1 billion dollars.

Al -Natour pointed out that the UAE is a pivotal player in the global sukuk market, with a share of 6.5% of the total internationally existing sukuk until the end of the first quarter of 2025, which places it in the fourth place in the world after Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, and Indonesia.

He stated that the UAE is one of the largest debt exporters in US dollars in emerging markets with a share of 7% of the total debt issues in dollars in these markets except China during the first quarter of 2025, thus ahead of most countries except Saudi Arabia, Brazil and Mexico.

Regarding the issues of bonds and sukuk associated with sustainability «ESG», the Natour said that the UAE ranked third among emerging markets except for China during the first quarter of 2025, after Turkey and the Philippines.