Saudi Arabia reopens fourth sukuk issue, bids total SAR 19.8 bln

Saudi Arabia has issued SAR 6.68 billion in Islamic bonds by reopening its fourth domestic sukuk issue originally launched in October, the finance ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.

The issue received SAR 19.8 billion worth of bids from investors and was 296 percent oversubscribed.

The bond tap raised the total value of the October sukuk issue to SAR 16.68 billion.

The additional sukuk issue was divided into three tranches: the first one valued at SAR 1.05 billion, maturing in 2022; the second tranche worth SAR 3.53 billion, maturing in 2024; and the third tranche set at SAR 2.1 billion, maturing in 2027.

Last month, Saudi Arabia received around SAR 32 billion in bids for its fourth domestic sukuk issue, raising nearly SAR 10 billion from the sukuk sale.

The Kingdom has been tapping into bond markets to tackle its budget deficit, expected at SAR 198 billion this year.