Middle East ETF News up to 1 year Ago
Capex super cycle: Saudi to invest $1trln in economy by 2030
August 16, 2024-Goldman Sachs report highlights nearly 73% of investment funds will go to non-oil sectors by 2030
Saudi Arabia is poised to invest $1 trillion in a "capex super cycle", with 73% of the capital infusion designated to fuel the kingdom's non-oil economy by 2030, according to Goldman Sachs.
Goldman Sachs also highlights an estimated $25 billion-per-year funding gap for the country's capex projects, while shifting focus on alternative sources of financing to address liquidity concerns.
Saudi Arabia's realignment on developing its non-oil economy has seen a notable shift from the earlier forecast, which pegged the country’s non-oil investment at 66%, Faisal AlAzmeh, who heads CEEMEA equity research at the US-based investment bank, said.
ETFs focusing on Saudi equities debut in China
July 16, 2024--The move comes as the two countries look to deepen their financial ties
Investors in China now have the option to trade in Saudi Arabian equities following the debut of two exchange traded funds in Shanghai and Shenzhen, as the two countries deepen their financial ties.
AGIX tracks the Solactive Etna Two ETFs focused on Saudi Arabain equities debuted today in Shenzhen and Shanghai in China.
The China Southern Asset Management CSOP Saudi Arabia ETF QDII is listed in Shenzhen, and the Hautai-Pinebridge CSOP Saudi Arabia ETF QDII is trading in Shanghai. According to Bloomberg, both the Shenzhen and Shanghai listings, which raised $87 million and $81.2 million respectively, traded close to their listing prices as of 10.20am local time, following their debut.
More Diversified Trade Can Make Middle East and Central Asia More Resilient
May 13, 2024--Reducing trade barriers, easing regulatory constraints, and upgrading infrastructure can mitigate challenges and help countries leverage new opportunities.
Dislocations from the pandemic, geoeconomic fragmentation, and Russia's war in Ukraine have shifted world trade dynamics.
While this has created challenges, the redirection of trade has also generated new opportunities, particularly for the Caucasus and Central Asia.
Since the war began, the region's economies have shown continued resilience and trade activity in many countries has surged, fueled in part by alternative trade routes. In 2022, Armenia, Georgia, and the Kyrgyz Republic saw their share of trade excluding oil and gas with major partners such as China, the European Union, Russia, and the United States rise as much as 60 percent. Hence, despite some moderation, gross domestic product growth in the Caucasus and Central Asia is projected to remain robust at 3.9 percent in 2024 before picking up to 4.8 percent in 2025.
Egypt: Economic downturn draws more investment from Gulf countries
March 28, 2024-- Opportunities in education and healthcare are high on the agenda for Saudi and the United Arab Emirates.
Over the last three years, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have dominated Egypt's mergers and acquisitions (M&A) scene, with activity set to intensify within the healthcare and education sectors in the midst of the current economic slump.
IMF Country Report-Qatar: Selected Issues From Hydrocarbon to Hightech: Mapping the Economic Transformation of QATAR1
February 7, 2024--Qatar's state-led, hydrocarbon intensive growth model has delivered rapid growth and substantial
improvements in living standards over the past several decades. Guided by the National Vision 2030,
an economic transformation is underway toward a more dynamic, diversified, knowledge-based, sustainable, and private sector-led growth model.
As Qatar is finalizing its Third National Development Strategy to make the final leap toward Vision 2030, this paper aims to identify key
structural reforms needed, quantify their potential impact on the economy, and shed light on the
design of a comprehensive reform agenda ahead.
The paper finds that labor market reforms could bring substantial benefits, particularly reforms related to increasing the share of skilled foreign workers. Certain reforms to further improve the business environment, such as improving access to finance, could also have large growth impact. A comprehensive, well-integrated, and properly sequenced reform package to exploit complementarities across reforms could boost Qatar's potential growth significantly.
How the Middle East and Central Asia Can Better Address Climate Challenges
November 29, 2023--Investment of up to 4 percent of GDP annually is needed to ensure climate resilience and meet emissions reduction targets
The Middle East and Central Asia face a sobering climate reality. Temperatures have risen twice as fast as the global average, and rainfall has become scarcer and less predictable. Fragile states are disproportionally affected and conflicts may worsen. The toll this is taking on people and economies is poised to worsen.
This week's United Nations Climate Change Conference, or COP28, provides a forum to discuss the policies needed to stave off more disruptive climate change. It comes at a vital time: our new analysis shows current global commitments would reduce emissions by just 11 percent by the end of this decade, well short of the 25 percent to 50 percent that's needed to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement. All countries must step up.
IMF Staff Completes 2023 Article IV Mission to Qatar
November 21, 2023--Qatar's economic growth has normalized in 2023 following the World Cup-driven boom. Continued normalization is expected in the near term, with a favorable medium-term outlook supported by the LNG production expansion and intensifying reform efforts.
Broad fiscal discipline amid hydrocarbon windfalls in 2022-23 resulted in sizeable surpluses and rapid central government debt reduction.
Sustained fiscal prudence, accelerated revenue diversification, and enhanced spending composition and efficiency should underpin the medium-term fiscal strategy.
The QCB's prudent policies have underpinned financial stability. Continued diligence is critical to maintain banking sector strength in a "higher-for-longer" interest rate environment.
GCC economy could hit $13trln by 2050 through green investments
October 19, 2023--Figure is double the initial projection of $6 trillion, according to Gulf Investment Report
Investing in green and sustainable projects could expand the gross domestic product (GDP) of Gulf countries to $13 trillion by 2050, according to a new report.
The figure is double the projected $6 trillion regional GDP, the Gulf Investment Report 2023, published by Century International Holdings, said.
The combined GDP of the GCC states has already reached the $2 trillion mark and is initially forecast to reach $6 trillion by 2050.
IMF-Regional Economic Outlook-Middle East and Central Asia-October 2023
October 12, 2023--Building Resilience and Fostering Sustainable Growth
Across the Middle East and Central Asia, the combined effects of global headwinds, domestic challenges, and geopolitical risks weigh on economic momentum, and the outlook is highly uncertain.
Growth is set to slow this year in the Middle East and North Africa region, driven by lower oil production, tight policy settings in emerging market and middle-income economies, the conflict in Sudan, and other country-specific factors. In the Caucasus and Central Asia, although migration, trade, and financial inflows following Russia's war in Ukraine continue to support economic activity, growth is set to moderate slightly this year.
