RIYADH: Saudi Arabian dairy producer Almarai Co is planning to raise at least $500 million from the sale of its debut international Islamic bond, or sukuk, the company's chief financial officer said on Wednesday.
"We are considering it an we are studying it. In the next few months we will have a decision," Paul Louis Gay told reporters, adding the company could tap global debt markets in the next 12 months.
He said the target for the sukuk would be regional investors.
"We're looking at how to get financing internationally. Almarai is growing and is becoming too big for the local Saudi market.
It's our responsibility to be among the first to address this," Gay said. (Reuters)
