Emaar Properties is looking at raising funds by tapping international debt markets through a bond issue in the second half of this year.

Emaar, the biggest listed developer in the UAE, is in the process of hiring advisers for the dollar-denominated transaction, US news agency Bloomberg cited people familiar with the matter as saying. The company has yet to make a final decision and may cancel the fund-raising plans if market conditions are not favourable.

The developer, which is almost 30 per cent owned by the government of Dubai, plans to build a new tower at its Dubai Creek Harbour Tower development, which will be at least 928 metres high, a full 100 metres taller than the current tallest tower in the world, Burj Khalifa. Emaar aims to break ground on the site in July. The work on the foundations package will start first and the substructure will take about a year to complete. Emaar is also developing several retail, hospitality and residential projects that require additional funding.

A spokesman for Emaar Properties did not respond to the news agency’s request for comment.

Governments and private firms in the region are lining up to tap debt capital markets ahead of a possible interest rate hike by the US Federal Reserve.

Last month, Qatar raised $9bn in a three-tranche bond offering. Saudi Arabia is looking to raise as much as $15bn from a bond offering after the holy month of Ramadan ends in July. In April, Riyadh also agreed terms with a group of international lenders for a $10bn loan, its first sovereign debt in at least 15 years.

Abu Dhabi, the biggest emirate in the UAE, launched a two-part $5bn bond, while Oman has plans to borrow $5bn-$10bn this year, and is considering a eurobond in the first half of this year. Kuwait is another Gulf country that has indicated interest in tapping capital markets to raise funds.

On the corporate side, Dubai’s Noor Bank has successfully launched its $500m debut capital-boosting bond, the UAE’s Emirates Islamic bank has sold a $750m sukuk (Islamic bond), and Qatar’s Barwa Real Estate signed $1.13bn-worth of financing agreements with a local lender in May. Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) has secured a $900m loan in recent weeks. Two Dubai financiers, including Emirates NBD, are also in talks with lenders to raise a total of $1.7bn in financing.