Gulf Investment Fund PLC on Thursday said its net asset value fell but less so than its comparator benchmark, while its half-year investment net income increased, and it noted benefits from rising oil prices and demand for liquefied natural gas.
The Isle of Man-based investment fund focusing on Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman said its net asset value per share as at December 31 was $1.9885, down from $2.0256 on June 30.
This represented a NAV total return of negative 1.8%, outperforming its benchmark, the S&P GCC Composite Index, which returned negative 7.1%.
Net income in investment at fair value in the six months to December 31 was $203,000, swinging from a loss of $11.9 million a year earlier. However, for overall net income, this fell to $334,000 from $8.2 million.
It also declared a final dividend of 3.51 cents per share to be paid on March 17
‘Gulf Cooperation Council markets benefited from rising oil prices, demand for liquefied natural gas, and improvements in global stock market trends. The GCC region is seeing further diversification away from hydrocarbons, as well as the ability to use the windfall from higher oil prices to invest in green growth,’ said Chair Anderson Whamond.
‘For 2022 year as a whole, Gulf Investment NAV increased 8.4%, continuing to outperform its benchmark and index, despite Q4 being one of the worst quarters for both Qatar and Saudi Arabia in the past 10 years. With gas demand likely to be more resilient than oil, alongside the world’s transition to net zero, Qatar should continue to see robust growth fuelled by gas prices in the long term.’
Looking ahead, Whamond added: ‘Following the recent sell-off in the market, valuations are becoming more attractive and we believe the markets will recover as soon as global market volatility settles down.
‘Going into 2023 the outlook for GCC remains robust, supported by socio-economic reforms, infrastructure projects, and favourable oil supply-demand dynamics that provides the majority of GCC states with twin surpluses as well as an economy that is mostly shielded from recession fears in Europe and US.’
Shares in Gulf Investment were up 1.6% to $1.90 each in London on Thursday afternoon.
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