All Categories
Featured
Table of Contents
Inform technique with proof: Use independent information on market confidence, development, and customer need to guide your tactical direction. Verify investment strategies: Make sure resource allowance and initiatives are backed by trustworthy market insight. Accelerate positive decisions: Equip members of your executive team with clear, actionable insight to reach arrangement quickly and take decisive action.
1 GCC, "HE GCCSG: The FTA between the GCC and the UK is a Major Strategic Opportunity to Elevate Economic Relations to New Horizons," October 20252 GCC, "Joint Declaration on Economic Cooperation Between the Association of the Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)," May 2025 3 IMEC, "India-Middle East-Europe Economic Passage (IMEC) Progress Update," April 20254 WAM, "UAE's CEPA programme enhances international economic ties with 26 strategic contracts," March 20255 Muscat Daily, "Oman, India set to sign totally free trade pact 'extremely soon'," September 20256 India Embassy Qatar, "India-Qatar Bilateral Relations," June 20257 Reuters, "Qatar's QIA prepares to a minimum of double annual US investments over next years," Might 2025; WAM, "US$ 110 billion in UAE financial investments in Africa position country as world's fourth-largest investor," October 2025; Whitehouse, "Truth Sheet: President Donald J.
Boards across Africa are getting in a specifying cycle. Capital is tighter. Analysis is higher. Danger is more interconnected. And the quality of boardroom judgment will significantly determine which organisations sustain growth and which fall back. In response, Climb Club, a presence launchpad curating gain access to and opportunities for board- and C-level females, in collaboration with BusinessDay, is introducing a brand-new monthly boardroom discussion convening accomplished African female executives who actively serve at the greatest levels of governance and business management and who are members of Ascent Club.
This inaugural session combines board practitioners to examine the genuine pressures shaping board agendas today: INSIDE THE BOARDROOM: The Strategic Dangers and Priorities Shaping 2026 Monetary discipline in constrained markets Progressing regulative and governance expectations Innovation interruption and cyber durability Long-lasting worth creation and sustainability imperatives Leadership choices boards need to prioritise heading into 2026 Ascent members and speakers consist of: Mediator Nnoli Akpedeye MD/CEO, Contego Servo Limited Speakers Sarah Ajose-Adeogun Handling Partner, Teasoo Consulting Ochanya R.
Deborah David CFO, Powergas It is an assembling of executives contributing straight to governance, risk oversight, and strategic instructions within their organisations. Through this partnership, Climb Club and BusinessDay are deliberately producing a recurring forum that surfaces board-level insight, amplifies reputable female governance voices, and expands access to the strategic thinking emerging from Africa's conference rooms.
Get the most recent insights, trends, and methods delivered directly to your inbox. Join Everest Group's newsletter to stay at the forefront of what's next.
Overall possessions held broadly constant over the quarter, while trading levels pointed to continued repositioning and as a response to geopolitical news rather than a significant new capital deployment. Worldwide macro conditions set a challenging backdrop.
The result was a quarter specified by volatility, dispersion, and selective positioning, instead of a clear directional trend. Oil associated possessions did well for the most part. On the favorable side, in January, the Boreas Outright High-end ETF launched on ADX to include more thematic ETFs. Also in Q1, 2 more Kraneshares have actually been authorized for launch by the Capital Market Authority (CMA) and will be authorized by the Abu Dhabi Stock Market (ADX). The GCC ETF universe consisted of 39 ETFs with a total AUM of $9.35 billion (since Q1 2026). Efficiency across the market was broadly unfavorable, with just 13 ETFs providing favorable returns compared to 26 in decline. Overall, the information reflects a market that is active but narrow, with capital and liquidity focused in a small subset of items.
Maximizing Corporate Efficiency Via Operational InnovationPerformance in Q1 2026 was driven by a narrow group of idiosyncratic winners, instead of broad market strength. The leading ETFs were concentrated in specific nation exposures and commodities, especially Turkey, Saudi petrochemicals, gold, and Egypt. Countries like Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Egypt were resilient during the quarter. Saudi Arabia's oil exposure supported its local market, with Aramco reaching brand-new highs amid higher oil rates, as well as its continued ability to export oil through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which stays open.
Egypt provided strong efficiency in January and February. Despite a market pullback in March due to the war, both Egypt's market and its ETFs still posted positive returns for the quarter. The continuous Middle East conflict and resulting energy shock have reshaped the outlook for emerging market equities in between the oil-haves and the oil-have-nots.
The sector likewise faced wider macro headwinds, including a more mindful policy backdrop in China and global risk-off sentiment driven by geopolitical tensions and greater energy prices. Thematic ETFs also struggled for the many part, especially those connected to carbon and high-growth technology, as appraisal pressures and worldwide rate dynamics weighed on performance.
The petrochemical ETF substantially outperformed. Flows in Q1 2026 were modest and highly concentrated, showing selective allocation instead of broad market participation. Regardless of weak performance, ETFs recorded $27.1 million in net inflows, with only a little number of items bring in brand-new capital. This shows that investors were targeting particular exposures, while lowering or rotating out of others.
Trading activity remained steady, with average 30-day volumes around 33,000 shares, concentrated in a handful of bigger and more liquid ETFs. A lot of activity appears to have actually taken location in the secondary market, allowing investors to adjust positions without significant primary developments or redemptions. While recent geopolitical events have led to more financial pressure on GCC countries, the area stays resistant and well capitalized to deal with the circumstance.
In January, Boreas launched its S&P Global Luxury UCITS ETF, adding a niche thematic direct exposure focused on international high-end and customer brands. ETFs by the CMA for cross-listing on ADX.
Q1 2026 revealed some progress connecting to ETFs in the GCC. We expect more worldwide and thematic ETFs to list in the GCC throughout 2026. While the dispute has impacted belief and prices during the quarter, it has actually driven more volume and interest in local properties.
In spite of continuous geopolitical stress and security threats throughout the Middle East, the economies of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have continued to demonstrate strength, preserving favorable growth momentum in recent years. While conflicts in the larger area and worldwide financial uncertainty stay a structural restriction, GCC nations have actually up until now limited their influence on domestic economic performance through strong fiscal positions, policy connection, and sustained financial investment.
Latest Posts
Navigating the 2026 GCC Business Environment for Leaders
How Future-Focused Strategy Reshapes the Regional Economy
How Does Business Excellence Crucial for Future Growth?


