Monthly trading data from the Kuwait Stock Exchange reveals a significant shift in investor behavior during the first four months of 2025, with Kuwaiti investors exiting the market and foreign investors stepping up their participation.
Kuwaiti investors pulled out a total of KD 232.2 million from the market between January and April, including KD 15.05 million in April alone. The decline was led by individual investors, whose activity dropped by KD 150.62 million, followed by institutional and corporate investors (-KD 49.8 million), client portfolios (-KD 22.64 million), and investment funds (-KD 9.13 million), according to Al-Rai daily.
In contrast, foreign investors increased their holdings by KD 230.14 million during the same period, with KD 30.5 million of that coming in April. Most of this increase was driven by institutions and companies, whose trading activity surged by KD 235.66 million. Foreign individual investors saw a decline of KD 8.88 million, while foreign investment funds rose by KD 3.36 million.
Gulf investor activity was mixed, rising overall by KD 2.07 million since the start of the year but declining by KD 15.44 million in April. Institutional and corporate investors from the Gulf added KD 2.05 million, and investment funds rose by KD 1.58 million, but individual trading fell by KD 2.54 million.
The number of active trading accounts also dropped slightly during the first four months of the year,
declining by 1.5% from 22,537 in December to 22,198 by the end of April.
- Active Kuwaiti accounts fell by 2.35% (486 accounts), totaling 20,154.
- Active foreign accounts rose by 8.9% (145 accounts) to 1,773.
- Active Gulf accounts increased by 0.75% (27 accounts).
Meanwhile, the number of inactive accounts rose by 0.73% (2,990 accounts), reaching 412,046 in total.
- Inactive Kuwaiti accounts rose by 2,800 to 390,200.
- Inactive Gulf accounts increased from 4,411 to 4,459.
- Inactive foreign accounts grew slightly by 140, to a total of 17,353.
