After Saudi, Kuwait sees prospects of MSCI bourse upgrade improving | ZAWYA MENA Edition

After Saudi, Kuwait sees prospects of MSCI bourse upgrade improving | ZAWYA MENA Edition:

Despite facing low levels of liquidity, Kuwait's stock exchange has an increasing probability of joining its peer GCC stock markets in Saudi, UAE and Qatar in gaining a market status upgrade by global index compiler Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI), analysts argue, especially with the intensive market reforms it has undergone.

MSCI announced in late June that it will include the Kuwait index in its 2019 Annual Market Classification Review for a potential reclassification from frontier to emerging market status. The index compiler will consult with market participants on the proposed reclassification of the Kuwait index, and will announce its decision in June 2019, with a potential implementation in May 2020.

Last year, the governance board of the Financial Times Stock Exchange (FTSE) Russell index compiler added Kuwait to its Secondary Emerging Market Index, in a transition that is set to take place in two stages in September and December in 2018.