LONDON, April 22 (Reuters) - J.P. Morgan said on Wednesday that Saudi Arabia and the Philippines will be added to its local currency emerging market debt index from January 29 next year.
The inclusion will cover Saudi riyal-denominated sovereign sukuk and Philippine peso-denominated government bonds, both entering the widely tracked GBI-EM index series.
Their weights will be introduced gradually, with Saudi Arabia expected to reach 2.52% and the Philippines 1.78% once fully phased in.
The update is part of a broader index adjustment, which will lower the "Country Cap" - the maximum weight, or share, any single country can hold in the "diversified" index - to 9% from 10%.
As a result, major markets including China, India, Mexico, Malaysia, and Indonesia will see their weight reduced to the new limit.
Based on current eligibility criteria, about eight Saudi sovereign sukuk with a combined value of roughly $69 billion could be included, JPMorgan said.
For the Philippines, nine eligible government bonds with a combined value of around $49 billion are under consideration.
(Reporting by Marc Jones; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
