Executive Summary
- GCC corporate earnings for the H1 2019 declined by 13.3% when compared with the same period for 2018.
- This was despite 4.5% growth in earnings of banking sector in H1 2019.
- Majority of sectors registered a decline in earnings, with commodities sector leading the rest with a decline of 57.8% followed by earnings for conglomerates which declined by 46.4% in H1 2019.
- Going ahead, for the full year, we expect GCC earnings to remain subdued and decline by 1.8% as consumer and business sentiments remain weak amidst concern of economic slowdown globally and rising geopolitical tensions in the region.
