Global investors still have appetite for GCC assets

Reforms drive robust inflows into GCC asset markets: Global investor interest in the GCC has picked up momentum amid reforms being enacted at a “phenomenal” pace, creating “a powerful and persuasive story” for investment, HSBC’s Regional Head of Markets & Securities Services for MENAT, Nabeel Albloushi said at HSBC’s MENAT Future Forum in Dubai, according to a release (pdf).

A “compelling case” for investment: The reforms — including introducing new hedging instruments and boosting institutional investor participation in asset markets — have spurred “USD bns of fund inflows,” Albloushi said. “The region has momentum with strong growth, healthy public finances, strong demographics and lower inflation than many other parts of the world,” Albloushi added.

The UAE is paying attention: The government is planning to implement new policies to ramp up the asset management sector’s contribution to the national economy, including “[simplifying] licensing process with substantially reduced timelines,” Securities and Commodities Authority chief executive, Maryam Buti Al Suwaidi, said at the forum.