- Title: MOROCCO: Arab stock exchanges union meets amidst financial crisis
- Date: 17th April 2009
- Summary: EXTERIOR OF CASABLANCA STOCK EXCHANGE BUILDING CASABLANCA STOCK EXCHANGE LOGO SCREEN SHOWING STOCK EXCHANGE DATA VARIOUS OF TRADERS AT WORK MAN RINGING A BELL AND TRADERS CLAPPING HANDS AT TRADING ROOM BELL RINGING VARIOUS OF EXECUTIVES OF CASABLANCA AND CAIRO STOCK EXCHANGES SIGNING AN AGREEMENT OF EXCHANGING INFORMATION AND EXPERTISE IN TRAINING CASABLANCA AND CAIRO STO
- Embargoed: 2nd May 2009 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Morocco
- Country: Morocco
- Topics: Finance
- Reuters ID: LVA24VZW4FB1GV1NHRKZJEZK1ZPR
- Story Text: The Moroccan economic capital, Casablanca, is hosting the 32nd annual assembly of the Arab Stock Exchanges Union, a body that gathers 15 stock markets, including heavyweights Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the UAE, and also market newcomers such as Libya and Syria.
The two-day meeting is taking place at a period when the world economy is facing its worst financial crisis since 1929.
Leaders of Arab stock exchanges expressed hope for a swift recovery after heavy losses since last summer.
The participants at the meeting stressed that Arab stock exchanges have the fundamentals to rebound faster than other emerging markets, but to do so they must first gain investors' trust by applying strong regulations. They also need to increase transparency to bolster battered investors' confidence.
Chief Executive of the Casablanca Stock Exchange, Omar Yidar, said he wanted to see Arab markets merging into a united body.
"The objective of this meeting is to encourage Arab investments and the exchange of techniques and information on stock exchanges. This will help make a basis for a united Arab financial market that could contribute to the economic and social merger of Arab states," he said on Wednesday (April 15).
The global crisis which has swallowed a huge chunk of wealth around the world, has seen acute effects in the oil-rich Gulf region.
Foreign interest in Gulf Arab stock markets has grown after last year's crash, in which four of the seven benchmarks indexes dropped more than 35 percent, sending valuations plummeting.
Gulf Arab governments are easing curbs on foreign capital, hoping more institutional investment will help reduce volatility in the markets, which are dominated by individual investors.
According to Issa Kadem, the head of the Dubai's financial market who attended the assembly, the Dubai market shows signs of recovery.
"Our stock market stabilised during January and February and today there are some signs of revival. Since the beginning of the year, the market index rose by around 3 percent and there was new activity during the last two months despite the fall we witnessed in January and February. The stock exchange's activity is returning to the same level of last year," Kadem said.
The financial executives discussed ways of restoring confidence among investors, agreeing there is a need for strong regulations, more transparency and better governance rules.
Majid Caouki Surial, head of the Egyptian Stock Exchange, said that the world financial crisis has had a different impact on the various Arab stock markets.
"Every stock market in the Arab world and in North Africa dealt with the crisis in a different manner, according to the situation of its market. The way Kuwait, Dubai and Egypt dealt with the crisis was completely different from the way Morocco reacted to it. For example, Morocco was not badly affected by the crisis like Dubai or Egypt. I believe that the most important thing right now is to exchange expertise on how to face the crisis and of course to see what can be done in the future," Surial said.
On the sidelines of the opening ceremony of the assembly, the Egyptian and Moroccan stock exchanges signed a partnership convention to exchange and share information and expertise in the field of training. The deal was signed by the heads of the two stock exchanges.
The Union of Arab stock exchanges is due to conclude the two-day meeting on Thursday (April 16) by adopting a series of recommendations to strengthen the ties between its members. The idea of setting up an Arab Federation of brokerage firms was also mooted during the Casablanca meeting.
The next Arab Stock Exchanges Union assembly will take place in December in Cairo. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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