LONDON: Pakistan will soon issue an Islamic bond denominated in dollars, after the success of its recent dollar-denominated international bond, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said on Wednesday.

Pakistan, a favourite with frontier market investors following peaceful elections last year, launched a Eurobond earlier this month in two $1 billion tranches.

“We will be coming up in dollar sukuk paper very soon,” Dar told a Pakistan investment forum in London. Pakistan has previously issued sukuk denominated in Pakistan rupee.

Following a sell-off in emerging markets last year, investors have been returning with enthusiasm to emerging market debt, encouraging a spate of recent issues from borrowers such as Zambia and Romania, as well as Pakistan.

Dar said Pakistan's recent dollar bond received bids totalling $7 billion, reflecting strong demand for the deal.

“There is the confidence the international community has shown in the revival of the economy,” he said.

Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif told the investment forum that growth in the South Asian economy would likely exceed 4 per cent in the 2013/2014 financial year.

The sukuk, or Islamic bond, market has also been increasingly active. Dubai launched its first 15-year sukuk – an unusually long tenor for an Islamic bond – last week.

Britain has also said it plans to launch its first sukuk issue during the current financial year.