GCC Trade

Defensive sectors in GCC-A great bet in today’s times

The 2020 stock market crash due to Covid-19 has been fast and short, if the markets do not fall to the lows of March 2020 again. The Oil price crash and social distancing measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19 has impacted sectors in the GCC in different ways.This can be observed in the current level of GCC Sector Indices. We make a comparison of the current levels of GCC sector indices with that of 52-week high and 52-week lowto...

How has liquidity in Saudi Tadawul fared during COVID-19?

Liquidity is one of the key indicators of a stock market and is a fundamental requirement for market efficiency. In recent years, Saudi Arabia’s equity market has implemented reforms, such as relaxation of foreign ownership and has achieved milestones such as inclusion in key indices including the MSCI Emerging Market Indices. With the listing of Saudi Aramco, it has also become one of the top 10 markets globally, by market capitalization. Given the market’s importance in GCC and globally, the...

COVID-19 may force GCC companies to cut dividend payout

Dividend payments have been an important tool to get investors to buy shares of companies as dividends provide a return on investment even during periods when the markets are down. GCC Companies listed on stock exchanges have provided consistent dividends in recent years. Due to Covid-19, many GCC Companies may be forced to cut dividend payouts due to fall in earnings and need to preserve cash. We examine the impact on dividends due to the pandemic and its ramifications for...

GCC Stock Markets – Kuwait continues to be the best performer

According to recently published Monthly Market Review for the June, GCC markets recovered lost ground during the month, as the positive performance of Saudi equities lifted the broader index. Kuwait continued its positive run in 2019, registering gains for the sixth month in succession. Kuwait’s All Share index rose by 1.9% while its Premier market index rose by 2.3% in June. In the first half of 2019, Kuwait emerged as the best performing market with a gain of 19.1%. The...

How will trade war, Iran sanctions and OPEC supply cuts shape Oil markets in 2019?

Average crude oil prices have trended upwards for four consecutive months in 2019. The perception of oil risk due to factors like increasing geopolitical tensions triggered by the drone attack on Saudi oil vessels, the end of waivers for US sanctions on Iranian crude exports, unrest in Venezuela and sustained production cuts from OPEC may have all contributed to these higher oil prices. U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported that Venezuela’s oil output fell to 830,000 barrels per day (bpd)...

Trade Wars – How will it play out for the GCC?

The fears of a trade war were looming large ever since Donald Trump took charge as the U.S president. In an attempt to revive domestic industries, the U.S president has decided to levy charges on imports of steel and aluminum, signaling a potential trade war. After taking nearly a decade to bring back the optimism to the world economy post-financial crisis, the development of a trade war could become a deterrent to global growth. Trade wars are an unfavorable outcome...

These stocks in UAE and Saudi Arabia still trade above 5-year PE despite market fall

According to an analysis by Marmore MENA Intelligence (www.marmoremena.com), a research house specialized in MENA economies and business issues with the focus on providing actionable solutions, out of a total of 121 UAE-listed stocks (comprising of ADX’s 65, Nasdaq Dubai&rsquo's 5 and DFM’s 52), 12 stocks are trading at multiples that are higher than their 5-year average PE multiples, which includes stocks such as Etisalat, du, Aramex, Commercial Bank of Dubai and RAK ceramics, among others. Likewise, out of 173...