Falling oil prices hurt Middle East equities

As the oil price has plummeted, so has the value of Middle East equities, causing losses for investors across the region.

The world’s largest oil exporter, Saudi Arabia, was the worst affected. The index of the Saudi stock market by S&P fell 10% in November.

Meanwhile, the S&P Pan Arab Composite LargeMidCap index, which tracks the equity markets of a basket of Arab countries, declined 6% in the month. The fall in this index wiped out a third of the gains it has made so far this year.

WTI Crude Oil prices have now fallen below $70 a barrel – a third less than the price over the summer – a significant blow for regional economies, many of which are heavily dependent on the petrochemicals sector.

Not every Middle Eastern country suffered. The stock markets of Egypt, the UAE and Lebanon all rose during the month. The largest gain was from Turkey, which S&P considers a Middle Eastern country.

Low energy prices are good for some developed countries. A statement by S&P Dow Jones Indices says that, “the promise of cheap oil encouraged the S&P Developed BMI [broad market index] to a 2% a gain for the month”.

©2014 funds europe

HAVE YOU READ?

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

The tension between urgency and inaction will continue to influence sustainability discussions in 2024, as reflected in the trends report from S&P Global.
FIND OUT MORE
This white paper outlines key challenges impeding the growth of private markets and explores how technological innovation can provide solutions to unlock access to private market funds for a growing…
DOWNLOAD NOW

CLOUD DATA PLATFORMS

Luxembourg is one of the world’s premiere centres for cross-border distribution of investment funds. Read our special regional coverage, coinciding with the annual ALFI European Asset Management Conference.
READ MORE

PRIVATE MARKETS FUND ADMIN REPORT

Private_Markets_Fund_Admin_Report

LATEST PODCAST