MSCI to deliver verdict on Qatar

Index provider MSCI Inc that it announce its decision on reclassifying stock markets in the UAE and Qatar on December 14. MSCI announced in June that it would extend the review period for the potential reclassification of the MSCI Qatar and MSCI UAE Indices to emerging market status. Qatar and the UAE, currently classified as frontier markets, have been under review for an upgrade for the past two years, but issues such as stringent foreign ownership limits and use of dual account structures have been delaying the move. Both have implemented new systems to improve investor access to their markets, including a new delivery versus payment system in May. If Qatar or the UAE are reclassified as emerging markets, that change would be implemented in MSCI indexes in November 2012, at the earliest, the firm said previously. The upgrade is expected to bring in capital inflows to both markets, currently shunned by institutional investors. HSBC analysts have estimated that Qatar and UAE could receive inflows of $600 million should they graduate to the emerging category.