Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) announced that it had included the share of Dar Al Arkan Real Estate Development Company (DAAR), the largest listed real estate company in the Kingdom, in the MSCI Emerging Markets Index (MSCI’s EM Index) of Saudi stocks, given its semi-annual index review for the current month of November.
Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) is one of the most prominent index providers used by thousands of asset managers including all major banks, pension and sovereign wealth funds all over the world. MSCI currently benchmarks more than USD 12 trillion in assets, whereas the MSCI Emerging Markets Index is the most popular emerging markets index around the world with over USD 1.6 trillion in assets. MSCI uses many criteria to add companies to the Index, including the trading volume of company’s shares and the proportion of free trading opened up for foreign investors. The MSCI conducts Semi-Annual Index review in the months of May and November for a group of shares listed in Saudi Arabia’s stock market.
The Saudi stock market has stepped up efforts to join the prestigious MSCI Emerging Markets Index which has a potential to generate significant investment inflows estimated by Capital Market Authority experts to range between USD 25 and 35 billion. Recently, Saudi market has gone through marked reforms undertaken by the Saudi Capital Market Authority (CMA) to fulfill the requirements of joining the global indexes, which prompted MSCI to add the Saudi Arabia’s equity market to the watch list of its index. Saudi Arabia is getting the increased spotlight as an incubator of highly alluring emerging investment markets, especially with the notable trends embodied in Vision 2030 which promotes greater transparency and easy market access for qualified foreign investors.