Volume 20, Issue 3

Qatar’s economic growth and improvements in living standards have been underpinned by a state-led, hydrocarbon-intensive growth model. More recently, Qatar has been undergoing an economic transformation toward a growth model that is more dynamic, knowledge-based, sustainable, and led by the private sector. It will be guided by the recently published Third National Development Strategy, which aims to achieve the National Vision 2030. This paper suggests key reforms to achieve this goal, quantifying their potential impact on the real economy using a semi-structural, general equilibrium model that includes Qatar. Model simulations suggest substantial benefits from labor market reforms, particularly those that would increase the participation of skilled expatriate workers. They also suggest large growth gains from reforms for the business environment, including those that improve access to finance.

I analyze the potential of the EU’s Covered Bonds Directive (EU) 2019/2162 to promote the integration of Mediterranean Partner Countries (MPCs) into the EU’s Capital Market Union. I identify legal and supervisory conditions conducive for a successful development of covered bond (CB) markets. A formal model is presented to show how covered bond finance could be introduced in a banking environment in such a way that problems of asset encumbrance and unsecured debt runs are at least mitigated. Next, I study the question to what extent the EU’s covered bond framework is compatible with Islamic concepts of banking and finance? Finally, some policy objectives of EU and MPC governments are pointed out which can be expected to benefit from secured forms of bank debt funding such as covered bonds.

The study investigates volatility persistence, long-term memory and time-varying conditional correlations among the stock markets of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. Daily equity index data between 2012 and 2024 were analyzed using univariate fractionally integrated generalized autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity (FIGARCH) models to examine long-memory behavior and multivariate dynamic conditional correlation (DCC) models to assess conditional correlations between these markets. For each of the GCC equity markets, the analysis highlighted large degrees of long-memory and volatility persistence. Finally, the DCC model shows that strong and dynamic Intermarket links among the GCC, especially between KSA and UAE, exist and reflect significant volatility spillover from good economic ties. This study fills the gap in the literature by providing a comprehensive understanding of long-run volatility memory and inter-market associations in the GCC stock markets.

Exploring the significance of ESG performance is especially crucial in the Middle East, North Africa, and Turkey (MENAT) area, where economic and cultural environments differ. The study aims to empirically assess the relationship between firms’ dividend policy and ESG performance in MENAT, along with the moderating effect of audit quality. The research is novel in exploring this link in the MENAT region. The study uses dividend yield (DY) as the dependent variable and yearly ESG combined score from the Eikon Refinitiv database, which range from 0 to 100 as the primary independent variable, with control variables as retained earnings, profitability, firm size, and financial leverage. The results indicate a significant negative relationship between ESG scores and dividend yields, suggesting a trade-off between prioritizing ESG factors and short-term returns. The moderating effect of audit quality on the ESG-dividend policy connection is insignificant. Additionally, retained earnings and corporate size have positive effects on dividend policy, while financial leverage has a negative impact. Profitability shows an insignificant effect on dividend yield.