Kuwait - Kuwaiti ministers say the planned united currency of several Gulf states will not necessarily be pegged to the US dollar, local media reported Wednesday.

Al-Watan daily quoted the finance and foreign ministers of Kuwait as saying the new monetary unit, whose launch date keeps getting pushed back, could be pegged to a basket of currencies, if the countries decide to fix the exchange rate.

Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait have said they need more time to launch their joint currency. Oman will delay its entry as its monetary system was not yet ripe, while the United Arab Emirates pulled out, apparently upset that the joint central bank will be based in Riyadh.

While the birth of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) currency had been planned for next year, observers and ministers now say the earliest date would likely be 2013 if not later.

No name has been given for the new currency, although some reports speculate it might be called the khaleej, or gulf. (dpa)