Deutsche Asset and Wealth Management has listed an exchange-traded fund (ETF) in Europe that tracks equities in the Gulf, including Saudi Arabian stocks.
The MSCI GCC Countries ex Select Securities Index includes equities from all six countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council excluding a small number of securities due to restrictions on foreign ownership.
The firm says the ETF is the first Europe-listed product to give such broad access to the Gulf countries.
“The Saudi Arabian stock market has traditionally been difficult for foreign investors to access, so the launch of an index tracker providing exchange-traded exposure to all the GCC countries is a significant step forward,” says Manooj Mistry, Deutsche Asset and Wealth Management’s head of exchange-traded products, Europe, Middle East and Africa.
The Saudi Arabian stock market, the Tadawul, is currently closed to direct investment from buyers outside the Gulf countries, however the authorities plan to open the market to qualified foreign institutional investors in the first half of this year.
Deutche Asset and Wealth Management says the db x-trackers MSCI GCC Select Index Ucits ETF will have a 65% weighting to Saudi Arabia.
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