Bond Market of Indonesia: Investors Hunt for Sukuk Again
The Finance Ministry of Indonesia collected IDR 5.17 trillion (approx. USD $359 million) worth of Islamic bonds (in Indonesian: Surat Berharga Syariah Negara, or SBSN) through an auction on Tuesday (07/08), well above the indicative target of IDR 4 trillion (approx. USD $278 million). Islamic bonds are also known as Sukuk.
The Financing and Risk Management Office within Indonesia's Finance Ministry informed the public that total incoming bids amounted to IDR 10.90 trillion (approx. USD $757 million) at the latest auction. This figure exceeds the IDR 9 trillion worth of incoming bids in the preceding SBSN auction (24 July 2018).
Nicodimus Anggi Kristantoro, analyst at the Indonesia Bond Pricing Agency (IBPA), said demand was greatest for the six-month SPNS08022019 as it attracted IDR 3.62 trillion in incoming bids (with a 6.24 percent yield).
Ahmad Mikail, economist at Samuel Sekuritas Indonesia, said the rising appetite for Indonesian SBSNs can be attributed to the widening spread between yields of Indonesian bonds and US treasuries. On Tuesday (07/08) the spread was 478 basis points (bps), while at the previous SBSN auction the difference was 454 bps. This makes Indonesia's bond market more attractive for investors.
Meanwhile, the release of upbeat GDP data is also believed to support investor appetite. On Tuesday (08/07) it was announced by Statistics Indonesia (BPS) that Indonesia's GDP expanded by 5.27 percent year-on-year in the second quarter of 2018, beating expectations. However, analysts do agree the country will have great difficulty to show similar GDP growth figures in the remaining quarters of 2018.
