Qatar's Elusive Riyal Spurs MSCI to Seek Change for Stocks
- Offshore exchange rate trading at a discount to pegged rate
- Saudi Arabia-led group cut ties with Qatar in early June
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MSCI Inc. is proposing shifting to the offshore riyal rate to value Qatari stocks after investors complained that a boycott of the nation by its neighbors has made access to the onshore rate too difficult.
The index provider, whose gauges guide the allocation of about $11 trillion in assets, is consulting investors on a proposal to apply the WM/Reuters offshore spot rate to security prices and dividends for calculations, MSCI said in an emailed statement. The offshore rate was about 7 percent weaker than the onshore rate on Tuesday at 3.91 per dollar, according to prices compiled by Bloomberg. It has since fallen to 3.7538 per dollar.