Research
Examining the Impact of Oil Prices on the Gulf Stock Exchange: A System GMM Approach
Oil is a critical macroeconomic component of the global economy. This is hardly surprising given that the global crude oil market is the largest commodity market. Oil price swings may reflect or even foretell changes in the political and economic stability of oil-exporting and oil-importing countries. This study examined the impact of oil prices on Gulf country stock markets using data from to 2010 to 2020. The System Generalized Method of Moment estimation approach was applied, and the results indicate that stock markets are sensitive to oil prices and that their impact is positive. Similarly, economic activities and interest rates increase stock prices. However, the stock market price index is insensitive to inflation. Furthermore, the stock market index depends on its own lag. This study recommends that Gulf Cooperation Council countries diversify their economies for financial stability, rather than relying solely on natural resources.
Impact of Financial Development and Resource Rents on Total Factor Productivity in Gulf Cooperation Council Countries
The present study estimates the impact of financial development and resource rents on total factor productivity in Gulf countries. We used the panel data from 1984 to 2019 and applied the GMM approach. The results indicate that financial development and resource rents affect total factor productivity positively in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. The present study used population, corruption and trade openness as control variables, the results indicate that increasing trade openness contributes positively to total factor productivity. However, increasing corruption and population deteriorate productivity.
