GCC financial update

August turned out to be a month of steady improvements on the GCC’s stock markets. The Dubai Financial Market, which closed at a dismal 396 on July 28, recovered steadily to 443.89 by the close of play on August 25.

The market could be boosted further by the news that three companies have been given permission to list on the market: Fujairah Trade Centre, Bayan Investment Co Kuwait and Kuwait Commercial Markets Complex Co.

The Saudi bourse also saw steady improvement throughout August. From a level of 10,393 on July 28, the index rose gradually to close at 11,357.93 on August 25.

The biggest news of the month in Saudi Arabia was the IPO for Emaar the Economic City. According to Emaar, 10 million of the country’s 22 million nationals subscribed to the IPO and SR 7.18 billion was collected in the 10 days it was open. Over 30% of the total subscriptions were made via ATM machines.

Another major market, Abu Dhabi, also rose in August, reaching 3531 by the end of the month. Muscat moved up to 5035 by August and Bahrain touched 2175.

In late breaking news, Prince Alwaleed bin Talal could be a couple of months away from a US $7 billion flotation of his main investment vehicle, Kingdom Holding Company (KHC). According to UK press reports, Alwaleed, a member of the Saudi royal family and one of the world’s richest individuals, is to float a 30% stake in KHC on the Saudi Arabian stock market.

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