Fall in oil price pushes Abu Dhabi to sell bonds valued at $10bn

The government of Abu Dhabi announced on Tuesday that it has sold bonds worth $10 billion in what was the second such move in the UAE since oil prices started to fall in 2014.

According to a statement by the Department of Finance of the oil-rich emirate, the bonds were offered in three groups for a period of 10 to 30 years. The interest rates attached to the bonds range from 2.5 per cent to 4 per cent. The sale attracted investors regionally and globally, with more than 500 applications received, valued in excess of $30 billion.

Abu Dhabi is the capital of the United Arab Emirates and the richest of the seven emirates. Last May, it raised $5 billion from a bond sale that was the first in 7 years.

Most of the oil-producing Gulf States went to the local and foreign capital markets in search of money once oil prices started to plummet. On 28 September, the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Finance announced that it had raised $12.5 billion from the issue of international bonds.

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