Additionally, youths ages 15 to 24 in the Islamic Triangle make up 30% of the population, or twice the proportion in the developed world. However, the Middle East and North Africa are home to some of the highest youth unemployment rates at 23% to 24%. The Islamic finance sector is also a dominating factor that will further aid the service industry, with principles of sharing risk and avoiding speculation.
It also doesn’t hurt that investments in MENA countries average dividend yields of 5.7%. But potential investors should note that emerging market areas tend to have high risks in their investments as compared to developed markets.
For more information on the Middle East, visit our Middle East category. Some of the ETFs that will give you at least partial exposure to these countries include:
- Claymore/BNY Mellon Frontier Markets ETF (NYSEArca: FRN)
- SPDR S&P Emerging Middle East & Africa ETF (NYSEArca: GAF)
- Market Vectors Africa Index ETF (NYSEArca: AFK)
- WisdomTree Middle East Dividend ETF (NYSEArca: GULF)
- Van Eck Market Vectors Gulf States ETF (NYSEArca: MES)
Max Chen contributed to this article.