Oxford Business Group

The opening up of the GCC’s stock exchanges to foreign investment has been a salient feature of market commentary in recent years. The global economic crisis sent shockwaves through regional exchanges and, in the ensuing period of depressed trading, regulators around the Gulf embarked upon a market reform effort in a bid to attract scarce liquidity. The accession of both Qatar and the UAE to emerging market status by the influential indexer MSCI in May 2014 was a reward for this effort, but even as the decision was being put into effect, the attention of many global investors was already turning to Saudi Arabia. The

Over 2014, there has been a welcome recovery of initial public offering (IPO) activity in the GCC region. According to PwC, 16 GCC companies went to regional markets, raising a total of $10.8bn. The tail end of the year proved to be a particularly fruitful time, accounting for $7.3bn of the total and raising hopes that 2015 would see the continuation of the IPO rebound that investors have been waiting for since the dust settled on the global economic crisis of 2008. The Road to Recovery Saudi Arabia played a major role in the 2014 market recovery. The local bourse saw six offerings for a

In common with other cities in the Kingdom, Makkah’s growing population and location have placed a strain on the management of its water resources. The city’s rapid urban development, not to mention the regeneration of existing urban areas, is also necessitating a substantial programme of investment to expand and upgrade wastewater and sewerage networks. To achieve the goal of long-term water security, local authorities are increasingly looking to the private sector to provide high-tech and sustainable solutions. With nearly 2m inhabitants, rising to over 6m during the Hajj season, Makkah has long outstripped its capacity to rely upon nearby aquifers and instead draws on water

Pilgrimage forms one of the five pillars of the Islamic faith, and performing the Hajj at least once is mandatory for all Muslims who are physically and financially able to do so. The Hajj, however, can only be performed once a year over a specific five-day period. With an estimated 1.6bn Muslims in the world, catering for this requirement thus presents the Saudi government with unique logistical challenges. How to maximise the number of pilgrims able to participate, whilst ensuring their safety and comfort? Nowhere