Executive Summary
Kuwait Capital Markets have taken major strides in the past decade, capturing the attention of global investors. Driven by the strong performance of the stocks listed on the Premier Market, Kuwait has been posting strong returns while being less volatile than its peers. Kuwait’s much-awaited emerging market upgrade has set the platform for its Capital Markets to build upon. Among the 13 sectoral indices in Boursa Kuwait, the banking index continues to account for a large portion of the broader market in terms of market capitalization and is also the most actively traded, indicating their importance in Kuwait’s equity market landscape.
The reclassification of Kuwait from a frontier market to an emerging market, the key market reforms as a part of MSCI reclassification and the privatization of Boursa Kuwait, all played a role in highlighting the attractiveness of Kuwait for investment and led to additional flows of capital. Boursa Kuwait also seeks to be at the forefront of current stakeholder demands and has provided guidelines on Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) metrics and reporting. The impact of the additional disclosures remains to be seen.
