Business & Money | Friday 17 April, 2015 12:49 pm |

Saudi Arabia will open its $532 billion stock market to direct foreign investment on June 15, allowing qualified foreign institutions to buy shares, the Capital Market Authority (CMA) said.

Final rules covering the opening of the market will be published on May 4, the CMA added.
The authority announced last July that it would permit direct foreign purchases of shares in the first half of 2015. Fund managers believe tens of billions of dollars will eventually enter the country as a result.

In draft rules released last August before a period of public consultation, the CMA proposed a 10 percent cap on foreign ownership of the market’s value.
Among other draft rules, a single foreign investor could own no more than 5 percent of any listed firm, while all foreign institutions combined could own no more than 20 percent.
Till now, foreign investors have been restricted to buying Saudi shares indirectly through swaps or exchange-traded funds.