GCC market cap drops 3.8% to $801bn

GCC markets ended on a mixed note in September, led by volatility due to the outcome of the US Federal Reserve’s meeting, unstable oil prices, unexpected OPEC oil output cut, Deutsche Bank jitters, and uncertainty due to the upcoming US presidential elections.

The Bahrain Stock Exchange SE (up 0.7 per cent MoM) was the top gainer for the month, followed by Abu Dhabi (up 0.1 per cent MoM).

Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul (-7.5 per cent MoM) was the top loser, followed by Qatar (-5 per cent MoM), Dubai (-0.9 per cent MoM), Kuwait (-0.4 per cent MoM) and Muscat (-0.2 per cent MoM).

The combined market capitalization of GCC bourses declined 3.8 per cent MoM to $801bn in September from $832bn in August.

The Saudi bourse contributed the most ($353bn or 44 per cent) to overall market capitalization, followed by the Qatari index ($130bn or 16.3 per cent), and the Abu Dhabi and Dubai markets ($203bn or 25.3 per cent).

The Kuwaiti, Omani, and Bahraini exchanges contributed $115bn or 14.4 per cent.

Trading activity fell in September, with volume traded declining 14.6 per cent MoM to 8.8bn shares and value traded falling 33.9 per cent MoM to $15.1bn.