All Categories
Featured
Table of Contents
Inform technique with evidence: Use independent data on market self-confidence, development, and client need to assist your tactical direction. Validate financial investment strategies: Guarantee resource allowance and initiatives are backed by trustworthy market insight. Speed up confident decisions: Equip members of your executive team with clear, actionable insight to reach contract rapidly and take decisive action.
1 GCC, "HE GCCSG: The FTA in between the GCC and the UK is a Significant Strategic Chance to Raise Economic Relations to New Horizons," October 20252 GCC, "Joint Declaration on Economic Cooperation In Between the Association of the Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)," Might 2025 3 IMEC, "India-Middle East-Europe Economic Passage (IMEC) Development Update," April 20254 WAM, "UAE's CEPA programme enhances worldwide financial ties with 26 tactical contracts," March 20255 Muscat Daily, "Oman, India set to sign open market pact 'really quickly'," September 20256 India Embassy Qatar, "India-Qatar Bilateral Relations," June 20257 Reuters, "Qatar's QIA prepares to a minimum of double yearly United States financial investments over next years," Might 2025; WAM, "US$ 110 billion in UAE financial investments in Africa position nation as world's fourth-largest investor," October 2025; Whitehouse, "Truth Sheet: President Donald J.
Boards across Africa are entering a specifying cycle. Capital is tighter. Analysis is higher. Risk is more interconnected. And the quality of conference room judgment will progressively figure out which organisations sustain development and which fall behind. In response, Ascent Club, an exposure launchpad curating gain access to and opportunities for board- and C-level females, in partnership with BusinessDay, is launching a new regular monthly conference room discussion convening accomplished African female executives who actively serve at the highest levels of governance and corporate leadership and who are members of Climb Club.
This inaugural session combines board practitioners to examine the genuine pressures forming board agendas today: INSIDE THE CONFERENCE ROOM: The Strategic Threats and Concerns Shaping 2026 Financial discipline in constrained markets Progressing regulatory and governance expectations Innovation interruption and cyber strength Long-term value development and sustainability imperatives Leadership choices boards should prioritise heading into 2026 Climb members and speakers include: Moderator Nnoli Akpedeye MD/CEO, Contego Servo Limited Speakers Sarah Ajose-Adeogun Handling Partner, Teasoo Consulting Ochanya R.
Deborah David CFO, Powergas It is a convening of executives contributing directly to governance, threat oversight, and tactical instructions within their organisations. Through this partnership, Ascent Club and BusinessDay are purposefully developing a recurring forum that surfaces board-level insight, magnifies credible female governance voices, and expands access to the strategic thinking emerging from Africa's boardrooms.
4 March 2026 6:00 PM WAT Zoom Register to join the discussion. #InsideTheBoardroom #ExecutiveLeadership Registration Link: . Get the newest insights, trends, and techniques delivered directly to your inbox. Join Everest Group's newsletter to remain at the forefront of what's next.
The GCC ETF market entered Q1 2026 in a combination stage, with activity remaining raised however growth slowing. Total assets held broadly stable over the quarter, while trading levels pointed to continued rearranging and as a response to geopolitical news instead of a meaningful new capital release. Global macro conditions set a tough background.
The GCC ETF universe made up 39 ETFs with an overall AUM of $9.35 billion (as of Q1 2026). Performance across the market was broadly unfavorable, with only 13 ETFs providing positive returns compared to 26 in decline. Overall, the information reflects a market that is active but narrow, with capital and liquidity concentrated in a little subset of products.
Efficiency in Q1 2026 was driven by a narrow group of idiosyncratic winners, rather than broad market strength. The leading ETFs were focused in particular country direct exposures and products, particularly Turkey, Saudi petrochemicals, gold, and Egypt. Nations like Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Egypt were resilient during the quarter. Saudi Arabia's oil direct exposure supported its regional market, with Aramco reaching new highs amidst greater oil rates, as well as its continued ability to export oil through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which remains open.
Egypt delivered strong performance 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 improved the outlook for emerging market equities between the oil-haves and the oil-have-nots.
The sector also faced more comprehensive macro headwinds, consisting of a more mindful policy backdrop in China and worldwide risk-off belief driven by geopolitical stress and higher energy costs. Thematic ETFs also had a hard time for the most part, particularly those connected to carbon and high-growth technology, as appraisal pressures and worldwide rate characteristics weighed on performance.
Circulations in Q1 2026 were modest and extremely focused, reflecting selective allocation rather than broad market involvement. In spite of weak performance, ETFs taped $27.1 million in net inflows, with just a small number of products bring in new capital.
Trading activity stayed steady, with average 30-day volumes around 33,000 shares, focused in a handful of bigger and more liquid ETFs. Many activity appears to have actually taken place in the secondary market, enabling financiers to change positions without considerable primary creations or redemptions.
In January, Boreas launched its S&P Global High-end UCITS ETF, including a niche thematic exposure focused on worldwide high-end and customer brand names. Momentum continued into April with the approval of KraneShares AGIX and KWIN ETFs by the CMA for cross-listing on ADX. These funds are expected to introduce in April pending a final approval from ADX.
Q1 2026 showed some progress connecting to ETFs in the GCC. We expect more worldwide and thematic ETFs to list in the GCC during 2026. While the conflict has affected belief and prices throughout the quarter, it has driven more volume and interest in regional properties.
In spite of ongoing geopolitical stress and security dangers across the Middle East, the economies of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have actually continued to demonstrate durability, keeping favorable growth momentum recently. While disputes in the broader region and international financial uncertainty stay a structural restraint, GCC countries have up until now limited their impact on domestic economic performance through strong financial positions, policy continuity, and sustained investment.
Latest Posts
How AI Transformation Will Fuel Success?
Driving Regional Corporate Growth through Innovation
Mapping Regional Market Strategy in 2026

