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Qatar Stock Exchange today held at the Four Seasons Hotel a disucssion panel entitled "Realizing Qatar''''s true potential with MSC". The purpose of this event, which part of a periodical event called ''''Exchange views, is is to bring together leading decision makers and industry professionals from within Qatar to engage, discuss and debate on compelling and interesting topics that matter to the Qatari capital market.
The session was held with the presence of a group of investors, financial experts, and decision makers from the finanical industry. The included a group of panelists: Robert Ansari, Executive Director, Head of the Middle East, MSCI; George Challenor, Senior Director, Equity Capital & Asset Management, Ooredoo; Parvez Khan, General Manager, CBQ; Julian Bruce, Managing Director, Head of Institutional Trading, EFG Hermes; and Afa Boran, Managing Director, Asset Management, Amwal.
In the opening remarks delivered during the inaugural event of this series, Mr. Rashid bin Ali Al-Mansoori, CEO of Qatar Stock Exchange, expressed his hope that this occasion is an opportunity to consider and exchange views on enhancing the investment climate in Qatar .
Mr. Al-Mansoori elaborated on describing the significant role of Qatar Stock Exchange in consolidating the investment climate in the State of Qatar and described the inclusion of the Qatari market in MSCI Emerging Market Index as an added value to the market, espeically in view of the fact that this inclusion has shed light on the Qatari market ebfore local and global investment community, adding that this fact is evident in the account opening applications which saw an increase in Q1 of 2014, following the inclusiion, is equal to the account opening applications in 2013.
The QSE is working very closley with its listed companies with a view to inclusion in the MSCI Emerging Markets Index and increase the weight of the existing companies in it, noting that these efforts have resulted in the inclusion of several listed companies in this global index.
Mr. Mohsin Mujtaba, Market & Prouct Development Dirrector, QSE, explained the rationale of such meetings and discussion panels as a channel for open conversation between stakeholders as there is much talk about reforms in the regional and global capital markets. Therefore, this series is very important in terms of exchanging views and examining the issues related to Qatar''''s capital markets.
Mr. Robert Ansari, Executive Director at MSCI - Middle East, stated that the value of global investments tracking MSCI benchmarks worths $ 9.6 trillion and the inclusion in these indices requires satisfying quantitative requirments such as liquidity and trading values, as well as quantitative criteria such as market accibility. Mr. Ansari concluded by saying that international investors look at particluar factors when they take investmnet decesions in a particlaur market. Among these factors is the increase of foreign ownership limits, adherenace to the governance criteria, availability of local research on the local market, flexibility of regulations, market accessibility, and communication.
