Qatar attracted $2.5bn foreign portfolio investments in 2018

DOHA: Qatar has seen significant foreign portfolio investments into stocks after the global index provider FTSE Russell upgraded Qatar Stock Exchange (QSE) to Emerging Market status in 2015. The bourse attracted net foreign inflows of $2.5bn in 2018 and the trend continues to date where the QSE have attracted over $1.3bn year-to-date, revealed a top QSE official.

Attending the Smart Sustainability Forum, jointly organised by QSE and FTSE Russell here yesterday, Hussain Mohammed Al Abdullah, Marketing and Communications Director, QSE noted Qatar was the best performing market in the developed and emerging markets, last year.

He said QSE is positioning itself to be a premier investment destination in the region for systematic and sustainable investments. In 2016, QSE joined the UN’s Sustainable Stock exchange initiative and published ESG reporting guidelines for listed companies. In 2018, QSE launched its ESG platform as the first in the region, to encourage its listed companies to report their ESG activities.

QSE believes that Smart Sustainability is the future of investment. For many decades, investors have been looking at quarterly financials of companies to decide in which companies to invest in and which not. With changing investor demographics, rising risks from climate change, gender inequality, and compromised corporate governance, it is clear that there is more to just financial statements when deciding on which companies to invest in.

“We are working with our regulator on a plan to promote further adoption of ESG practices by our listed companies”, Hussain Al Abdullah said. He said the market regulator QFMA is offering all possible supports and cooperation on this.

FTSE Russell CEO Waqas Samad, Gary Rynhoud, Head of Sales, Middle East and Africa, FTSE Russell; and Mohsin Mujtaba, Director, Product and Market Development, Qatar Stock Exchange attended the event.