MSCI Review Boosts Stock Market Liquidity to 120.6 Million Dinars

Kuwait’s stock exchange concluded trading on Monday amid exceptional activity in trading liquidity, driven by the actual implementation of the periodic review of MSCI indices, whose changes took effect with the market’s closing bell. This triggered a wave of rebalancing among foreign portfolios and funds linked to global indices, which was clearly reflected in trading volumes and values.

Total trading liquidity rose to approximately 120.6 million Kuwaiti dinars by the end of Monday’s session, up from 85.9 million dinars on Sunday, an increase of 34.7 million dinars, representing strong growth of 40.40%. This surge signaled an accelerated pace of trading linked to the restructuring of investment weights and the execution of buy and sell orders resulting from the periodic MSCI index review.

Closing auctions served as a primary driver of the liquidity spike, attracting around 42.2 million dinars, equivalent to nearly 35% of the session’s total liquidity. This underscored the concentration of significant investment flows in the final minutes of trading, as foreign portfolios and funds implemented required adjustments to their positions in line with the new weights of Kuwaiti stocks within global indices.

High liquidity reflects the continued attractiveness of the Kuwaiti market to foreign institutional investors, as periodic reviews of global indices typically serve as key moments for the repositioning of index-linked funds, whether through increased exposure to stocks with raised weights or reduced positions in those with lowered weights.

**Monthly Trading**

Kuwait Stock Exchange trading during August showed a notable shift in the activity landscape across market sectors. The First Market led liquidity and trading volumes, while the Main Market dominated in terms of capital gains and price performance, combining strong inflows into leading stocks with accelerating investment momentum in small and mid-cap shares.

Trading data revealed that the First Market captured the largest share of circulating liquidity in August, supported by a clear rise in stock volumes and transaction counts, indicating sustained investor interest in leading stocks with significant market weights. Meanwhile, the Main Market recorded capital gains that outperformed the First Market, alongside a strong surge in its index, reflecting heightened risk appetite and a broader upward trend encompassing a wider segment of stocks.

The bourse posted capital gains of KD 870.22 million in August, raising the total capitalization to KD 53.28 billion by the close of trading on August 31, compared to KD 52.41 billion on July 30. Circulating liquidity in the Kuwait Stock Exchange rose by KD 175 million during August to reach KD 1.776 billion, up from KD 1.601 billion in July.

The volume of traded shares increased by approximately 261.475 million shares to reach 6.548 billion shares in August, compared to 6.286 billion shares in July. The number of transactions rose by 36.929 thousand deals to reach 459.289 thousand deals in August, compared to 422.360 thousand deals at the end of July trading. The General Index gained 1.6%, or 140.72 points, to close at 8,897.4 points at the end of August, up from 8,756.68 points at the end of July.

**The First Market**

The First Market achieved market gains valued at KD 381.6 million, bringing the capitalization of leading companies to KD 43.98 billion by the end of August, compared to KD 43.605 billion at the end of July.

Circulating liquidity in the First Market increased by KD 127.45 million to reach KD 1.05 billion in August, compared to KD 922.54 million in July.

The volume of traded shares in the First Market rose by 452.57 million shares to reach 2.817 billion shares by the end of August trading, compared to 2.364 billion shares at the end of July.

The number of executed transactions in the First Market increased by 17.518 thousand deals to reach 206.784 thousand deals by the end of August, compared to 189.266 thousand deals at the end of July.

The First Market Index gained 72.82 points to reach 9,288.3 points, compared to 9,215.48 points at the end of July trading.

**The Main Market**

The Main Market, which includes small and mid-cap stocks, recorded capital gains of KD 490.16 million, raising capitalization to KD 9.301 billion by the end of August, compared to KD 8.810 billion at the end of July.

Circulating liquidity in the Main Market increased by KD 47.56 million during August to reach KD 726.25 million, compared to KD 678.68 million in July trading.

The volume of traded shares decreased by 191 million shares to reach 3.73 billion shares by the end of August, compared to 3.922 billion shares at the end of July.

The number of executed transactions in the Main Market rose by 19.411 thousand deals to reach 252.505 thousand deals in August, compared to 233.094 thousand deals at the end of July.

The Main Market Index gained 493.91 points to reach 9,230.47 points during August, compared to 8,736.56 points in July.