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Dow Jones launches benchmark Islamic equity index for Pakistan |
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Source: Shariabanking.net
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Wednesday, 06 September 2006 |
 Islamic Equity Index
The Dow Jones-JS
Pakistan Islamic Index, which includes 30 companies with a collective
market capitalisation of $22 billion, measures the performance of
Sharia-compliant companies listed on the Pakistani stock market.
It
is Pakistan's first Islamic equity index and offers an opportunity to
Sharia-compliant investors to benefit from the nearly 30 per cent
growth Pakistani markets have witnessed in the last two years.
About
56 listed companies in Pakistan, one of the most attractive emerging
markets globally, pass the test of Sharia compliance, officials said.
The
index will serve as an underlying benchmark for investment products
such as mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and other investment
products.
JS Abamco Ltd, Pakistan's top asset management company
which manages $400 million in funds, said it would launch Pakistan's
first Sharia-compliant index fund riding on the index. The open-ended
fund will be JS Abamco's tenth and will expect to raise about $100
million, Najam Ali, its chief executive told Gulf News.
"We aim to introduce several Sharia-compliant investment opportunities to Islamic fund managers across the globe," Ali said.
Islamic
fund managers globally are estimated to manage $100 billion of assets,
which is expected to grow by 15-20 per cent a year for the next 15 to
20 years.
Najam Ali said corporate earnings in Pakistan were
likely to rise 25 per cent this year after jumping 30 per cent last
year. The market trades at about 9-10 times 2007 earnings.
Pakistan's broader 100-company index jumped 34 per cent in 2005.
Dow
Jones Indexes has an Islamic index for Turkey, Malaysia and Pakistan
and is poised to launch one for Dubai in partnership with Dubai
Financial Market. It also has a 50-company Arabian Titans Index that
includes companies from 10 countries.
"The Pakistan Islamic
Index will raise the confidence of global investors looking for
Sharia-compliant opportunities in the Pakistan stock markets," said A.
Rushdi Siddiqui, Global Director, Dow Jones Islamic Market Index Group.
Siddiqui
said about 1,900 companies across 40 countries with a market
capitalisation of $11 trillion pass the test of Sharia compliance,
nearly 99 per cent of which are in non-Islamic countries.
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Last Updated ( Saturday, 30 December 2006 )
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