'Al-Shal': Institutions and Companies Acquire 67.6% of Shares Sold on the Stock Exchange

A specialized economic report stated that the institutional and corporate sector remained the largest participants in the Kuwait Stock Exchange from January 1, 2026, to October 31, 2026. Its share rose to account for 67.6 percent of the total value of shares sold, compared to 60.7 percent for the same period in 2025, and approximately 67.3 percent of the total value of shares purchased, compared to 62.3 percent for the same period in 2025.

The "Al-Shal" Consulting report said on Saturday, based on figures issued by the Kuwait Clearing Company, that the institutional and corporate sector sold shares worth 11.737 billion Kuwaiti dinars (approximately 36.032 billion US dollars) and purchased shares worth 11.688 billion dinars (approximately 35.882 billion US dollars), making its net trading activity a net seller of approximately 48.8 million dinars (approximately 149.8 million US dollars).

It added that the second largest contributor to market liquidity was the individual sector, with its share declining to account for 29.7 percent of the total value of shares purchased, compared to 35.8 percent for the same period in 2025, and approximately 29.3 percent of the total value of shares sold, compared to 37.4 percent for the same period in 2025.

It clarified that individual investors purchased shares worth 5.157 billion dinars (approximately 15.831 billion US dollars), while selling shares worth 5.092 billion dinars (approximately 15.632 billion US dollars), resulting in a net trading position (net buyers only) of approximately 65.2 million dinars (approximately 200 million US dollars).

It indicated that the client accounts (portfolios) sector is the third largest contributor to market liquidity, with its share rising to account for 2.6 percent of the total value of shares sold, compared to 1.4 percent for the same period in 2025, and approximately 2.6 percent of the total value of shares purchased, compared to 1.5 percent for the same period in 2025.

According to the report, the client accounts (portfolios) sector sold shares worth 456.702 million dinars (approximately 1.4 billion US dollars) and purchased shares worth 453.745 million dinars (approximately 1.3 billion US dollars), resulting in a net trading activity as a net seller of approximately 2.957 million dinars (approximately 9.07 million US dollars).

It noted that the last contributor to market liquidity is the investment funds sector, which accounted for 0.5 percent of the total value of shares sold, the same percentage as the corresponding period in 2025, and approximately 0.4 percent of the total value of shares purchased, compared to 0.5 percent for the same period in 2025.

It continued that the investment funds sector sold shares worth 80.192 million dinars (approximately 246.189 million US dollars) and purchased shares worth 66.766 million dinars (approximately 204.971 million US dollars), resulting in a net trading activity as a net seller of approximately 13.4 million dinars (approximately 41.13 million US dollars).

The report said that a characteristic of the Kuwait Stock Exchange is its continued local nature, as Kuwaiti investors were the largest participants, purchasing shares worth 14.560 billion dinars (approximately 44.699 billion US dollars), thereby accounting for 83.8 percent of the total value of shares purchased, compared to 85.4 percent for the same period in 2025.

It pointed out that Kuwaiti investors sold shares worth 14.166 billion dinars (approximately 43.489 billion US dollars), thereby accounting for 81.6 percent of the total value of shares sold, compared to 87.6 percent for the same period in 2025, bringing their net trading activity (net buyers only) to approximately 393.7 million dinars (approximately 1.2 billion US dollars).

The report stated that the share of other investors in the total value of shares sold amounted to approximately 2.937 billion dinars (around 9.016 billion dollars), representing 16.9 percent of the total value of shares sold, compared to 10.5 percent for the same period in 2025.

It noted that the value of shares purchased by other investors reached approximately 2.6 billion dinars (around 7.9 billion dollars), accounting for 15 percent, compared to 13.1 percent for the same period in 2025, resulting in a net selling position in their trades of approximately 337.044 million dinars (around 1 billion dollars).

It mentioned that the share of investors from Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries in the total value of shares sold amounted to approximately 1.5 percent, compared to 1.9 percent for the same period in 2025, valued at 262.946 million dinars (around 807.244 million dollars).

It added that the value of shares purchased by investors from GCC countries reached approximately 206.282 million dinars (around 633.285 million dollars), representing 1.2 percent, compared to 1.5 percent for the same period in 2025, resulting in a net selling position in their trades of approximately 56.6 million dinars (around 173.7 million dollars).

The "Shalal" report showed a change in the relative distribution among nationalities compared to the previous period, with Kuwaitis accounting for approximately 82.7 percent, traders of other nationalities 15.9 percent, and traders from GCC countries 1.4 percent, compared to approximately 86.5 percent for Kuwaitis, 11.8 percent for traders of other nationalities, and 1.7 percent for traders from GCC countries in the same period of the previous year.

The report indicated that the number of active trading accounts rose by approximately 19.2 percent between the end of December 2025 and the end of October 2026, compared to a rise of 93.6 percent between the end of December 2024 and the end of October 2025.

It clarified that the number of active trading accounts at the end of October 2026 reached approximately 56,834 accounts, representing 11.9 percent of the total accounts, compared to approximately 57,472 accounts at the end of September 2026, which accounted for 12.1 percent of the total accounts in the same month, marking a decline of 1.1 percent.