awaited opening of its stock market to foreigners will be “gradual”, the country's capital market regulator said Tuesday. “It is still within our strategy, but it should be done in an orderly and gradual manner to make sure it does not impact the market's stability,” Abdulrahman Al-Tuwaijri, chairman of the Capital Market Authority (CMA), said at a meeting with executives from listed companies that was attended by reporters. “This gradual manner will happen, but we need time to make it happen in a safe and orderly manner. We also need to make sure it will not have any negative impact on the market.” The plan to widen foreign access to Saudi shares via limited direct ownership has helped to boost the stock market in the last several months. Foreigners can already buy Saudi shares through swap deals.
