Citigroup Middle East and Africa equity strategist AndrewHowell pegs the region's correlation to world markets at about 40%, which means the GCC is unlikely to follow U.S. equities' downward trend.
Markets like the UAE and Qatar limit foreign ownership of listed local companies to 49%, while Saudi Arabia's equities remain closed to foreign ownership, says AndrewHowell, a Middle East strategist at Citigroup.