An Investigation of Sukuk in the Gcc Countries

Abstract

Since the 1970s, the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council which is composed of Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Oman) members succeeded to have economic development through their natural resource endowment. Nevertheless, starting from the 2000s, they have been struggling with local and international economic and political shocks. It became indispensable to diversify their economies to protect their economies from unexpected external shocks. Islamic financial instruments, particularly sukuk offers alternative solutions to these countries. In this vein, this study focuses on sukuk and its possible role in the macroeconomic performance and sustainable economic growth of the GCC. As a relatively new Islamic financial instrument, sukuk was first issued in 2001-2002 for drawing funds from international funds. Since then, sukuk became one of the most crucial Islamic financial instrument in passing 20 years. The aim of this study is to pinpoint the benefits of sukuk practices for the the GCC economies and analyze how sukuk can contribute to the economic growth in the member countries. The anaysis will be based on the case study. It is concluded that sukuk market has a great potential to contribute to the macroeconomic performance of the GCC. Development of sukuk markets in the GCC will not only promote the financial inclusion but also induce economic growth.