Numbers: Gulf financial market indices until August 2023
Shrouq
Gulf stock markets witnessed their first decline in three months, affected by the worst monthly performance in global stock markets this year.
Despite a recovery in the second half of the year, the MSCI World Index fell 3.6% during August 2023 after the Federal Reserve warned of higher interest rates in the longer term, with some economists even considering another rate cut in 2024.
China's influence on economic activity in the Gulf countries
Zawya, a website specializing in news from the Middle East and North Africa, noted on August 4 that the weak data coming from China also affected all areas, which was exacerbated by the possibility of the European Central Bank continuing to raise interest rates in September 2023.
As economic activity in China continued to decline with manufacturing activity contracting for the fifth month in a row, government reforms and new targeted policies did not have a tangible impact on markets and sentiment.
Gulf Markets Performance Index
The MSCI GCC index saw a sharp decline of 3.8% during the month of August as a result of declines in four out of seven stock exchanges, including Saudi Arabia. This decline came despite oil seeing gains for the third month in a row thanks to supply cuts and flat demand data.
Qatar was the worst performing market in the GCC during August 2023, with a decline of 7.0% due to a decline in almost all indicators on the stock market. Followed by Kuwait and Bahrain, with decreases of 3.4% and 2.0%, the Saudi TASI index also decreased by 1.7%.
The percentage of decline in Qatar erased all the gains it had achieved since the beginning of the year, as it recorded the largest decline in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries by 4.6%, followed by Abu Dhabi and Kuwait by 3.9%. While Dubai was the best performing market, achieving gains of 22.4% since the beginning of 2023, followed by Saudi Arabia by 9.7%.
The decline of the sectors of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries
The GCC countries showed declines in most sectors, with the healthcare sector leading by -11.6%, followed by the food, beverages and communications sector. Banking and materials stocks fell by 3.9% and 2.9%, respectively, while insurance and energy stocks showed gains of 5.9% and 4.4%, respectively.
While the general index of the Dubai Financial Market rose by 0.6% last month, the FTSE ADX index rose by 0.2%. The general index of the Dubai Financial Market witnessed a monthly increase of 0.6% during the month of August 2023, closing at 4082.87 points, recording its fifth monthly gain in a row.
The performance of the monthly index was mixed during the month after five out of eight indices witnessed declines during the month of August 2023, while the remaining three indices witnessed gains that compensated for the general decline during the month.
Index of consumer and industrial goods
The Consumer Goods Index recorded the largest monthly gains for the second month in a row, recording a growth of 7.4% to close the month at 153.2 points, mainly driven by an increase in the prices of UAE refreshments by approximately 6.9% during August 2023.
The industrial index came as the second largest gainer during the month, with a growth of 4.5% after the three companies that make up the sector, led by Air Arabia, recorded an increase in their share prices by 9.7% during August 2023. The real estate sector index also witnessed an increase of 2.7% to close the month at 6,865.6 points. Mainly driven by an increase in the share price of Al Mazaya Holding Company by 18%.
The telecommunications services index was the largest decliner among the indicators, recording a decline of 3.6% during the month, closing the month at 898.0 points.
Monthly stock performance
According to the monthly stock performance from the American Bloomberg Agency, Al Mazaya Holding topped the list of monthly gainers with an increase of 18% in the share price, followed by Emirates Investment Bank and Iktitab Real Estate Holding with gains of 11.2% and 11%, respectively.
On the declining side, Takaful Insurance Company topped the list, recording a decline in its share prices by 25.6% during the month, followed by Aramex and Dubai Islamic Insurance Company, with their share prices declining by 15.3% and 13.3%, respectively.
