ShareIndividuals largest contributor to liquidity
KUWAIT: Kuwait Clearing Company issued its report titled "Trading Volume According to Nationality and Category" for the period extending from 01/01/2017 to 30/11/2017 published on the official website for Boursa Kuwait. The report indicated that individuals still form the largest trading group and their share started to increase and they captured 49 percent of total value of sold shares (45.7 percent for the same period 2016) and 48.8 percent of total value of purchased shares (41.5 percent for the same period 2016). Individual investors sold shares worth KD 2.710 billion and purchased shares worth KD 2.697 billion with a net trading, selling, by KD 13.235 million.
The second large contributor to market liquidity is the clients' accounts (portfolios) which captured 22.4 percent of total value of sold shares (18.3 percent for the same period 2016) and 20.9 percent of total value of purchased shares (15.9 percent for the same period 2016). The sector sold shares worth KD 1.240 billion and purchased shares worth KD 1.157 billion, with a net trading, more selling, by KD 82.842 million.
The third contributor, is corporations and companies sector which captured 21.4 percent of total value of purchased shares (33.3 percent for the same period 2016) and 20.9 percent of total value of sold shares (26.8 percent for the same period 2016). The sector purchased shares worth KD 1.182 billion and sold shares worth KD 1.156 billion with a net trading, purchasing, by KD 25.860 million.
The last contributor to liquidity is the investment funds sector which captured 9 percent of total value of purchased shares (9.3 percent for the same period 2016) and 7.7 percent of total value of sold shares (9.2 percent for the same period 2016). The sector purchased shares worth KD 495.110 million and sold shares worth KD 424.893 million, with a net trading, more purchasing, by KD 70.218 million.
Boursa Kuwait still continues to be a local bourse with more share for Kuwaiti investors forming the biggest trading group and sold shares worth KD 4.886 billion capturing 88.3 percent of total sold shares, (85.6 percent for the same period 2016), and purchased shares worth KD 4.783 billion capturing 86.5 percent of total value of purchased shares (86.4 percent for the same period 2016). Thus, their net trading, the only one selling, by KD 103.171 million, which is an indicator of the continued decline in confidence of local traders, despite the relative activity of the Boursa.
Other investors share, out of the total value of purchased shares, scored 9.3 percent, (9.7 percent for the same period 2016), and purchased shares worth KD 512.475 million and sold shares worth KD 443.437 million, or by 8 percent of total sold shares (11.3 percent for the same period 2016); thus their net trading value, more purchasing, by KD 69.037 million.
GCC Investors' share out of total value of purchased shares scored 4.3 percent (3.9 percent for the same period 2016), worth KD 235.510 million, while value of sold shares scored 3.6 percent (3.1 percent in the same period 2016), worth KD 201.377 million, their net trading, purchasing, by KD 34.134 million.
Relative distribution among nationalities changed from its previous one and became as follows: 87.4 percent for Kuwaitis, 8.6 percent for traders from other nationalities, and 3.9 percent for GCC traders vis-à-vis 86 percent, 10.5 percent and 3.5 percent for Kuwaitis, other nationalities and GCC traders respectively for the same period in 2016. This means that Boursa Kuwait remained a local one with the rise in the share of its investors from local traders. However, the turnout is still
higher from investors mainly outside the GCC region than from the inside of the GCC region in which an overtrading of individuals is a dominant factor, who also increased their share with the increasing activity of the Boursa.
Number of active accounts between the end of December 2016 and the end of November 2017 rose by 9.6 percent, (compared to a decrease by -41.1 percent between the end of December 2015 and the end of November 2016). Number of active accounts in the end of November 2017 scored 17,101 accounts or 4.5 percent of total accounts versus 17,703 accounts in the end of October 2017, i.e. about 4.7 percent of total accounts for the same month, with a decrease of -3.4 percent during November 2017.
Comparative performance of selected markets
November's performance was inclined towards negative performance. During this month 9 markets achieved losses while 5 markets achieved gains. Losses outweighed gains. The number of winners from among mature and emerging markets was 2 only (out of 7 markets). Three markets achieved gains, while other four markets recorded losses in the GCC region. The losing markets increased during the 11 months, ie since the beginning of the current year, up to 5 markets from 4 markets as in the end of October. All 5 losing markets belong to the GCC region.
The biggest loser in November was Dubai market whose index lost in one month 5.9 percent which pushed it to the bottom of the negative zone with accrued losses since the beginning of the current year by 3.1 percent, although it was among gainers from the beginning of the current year until the end of last October. The second biggest loser in November was the Qatari market which lost -5.5 percent in one month which increased its losses from the beginning of the current year to -26.1 percent to lie deep in the bottom of the negative zone. The third biggest loser was Boursa Kuwait whose weighted index lost about 5 percent in one month though it remained gaining 4.9 percent since the beginning of the current year though it abandoned its position as the best performing GCC stock market until the end of October and was replaced by Bahrain market which gained 5.2 percent since the beginning of the current year and achieved positive performance in November by 0.5 percent gain.
The biggest gainer in November was the American market which gained 3.8 percent in one month despite the rumors about raising the interest rate in December and perhaps due to reducing corporate tax from 35 percent to 20 percent. It retained its position as the second biggest gainer since the beginning of the current year by 22.8 percent gain.
The second biggest gainer was the Japanese market by 3.2 percent gains and it was the biggest gainer in October by 8.1 percent gains. With the two months' gains the Japanese market surpassed the German's to the third gainer since the beginning of the current year by 18.9 percent gains perhaps as a result of the late elections which provided political stability supportive to the economic reform contrary to stumbling efforts in Germany to form a government. The third biggest gainer was Muscat market which was the biggest gainer in November among the 7 GCC markets. It added 2 percent gain in one month; nevertheless. It remained the biggest loser since the beginning of the current year by its index losing -11.6 percent since the beginning of the current year.
Predicting markets' future performance in December remains difficult. It has been customary from stock markets to be active in December even without a convincing justification. Their activity aims to achieve the best possible closures for their indexes in the end of the year in an attempt to influence the financial results for dealers at these stock markets. That may also be supported by better projections of economic growth for the emerging and mature markets. In the Gulf region, the trends are divided between improved oil prices as a positive sign and the development of geopolitical events as a negative sign on the other. Sustained stability of oil prices supported by some political détente weaken their worse evolution. We predict that December's performance will be positive in general; this includes the regional stock markets if geopolitical events continue without deterioration.
Weekly performance of Boursa Kuwait
The performance of Boursa Kuwait for last week was mixed, where the indexes of traded value, volume, and number of transactions showed an increase, while the general index showed a decrease. AlShall Index (value weighted) closed at 379.2 points at the closing of last Thursday, showing a decrease of about 5.3 points or about 1.4 percent compared with its level last week, while it increased by 16.2 points or about 4.5 percent compared with the end of 2016.
AL-SHALL WEEKLY ECONOMIC REPORT
