At the peak of their recent bubbles, the stock exchanges of the Gulf Cooperation Council were the largest by market capitalization among emerging markets - close to the size of Hong Kong and Singapore. Sitting on over a third of the world's proven oil reserves, developments in the Gulf stock markets are becoming critical in understanding international flows in private placements and project finance. The implications of the recent boom and bust episode on systemic stability are potentially large, and valuable lessons can be learned for other emerging equity markets both within and beyond the Arab region. This book provides an analysis of the structural strengths and weaknesses of the Gulf stock markets and the appropriateness of policies implemented. It examines the effect of the 2006 correction on financial stability and economic growth and explains the differences in performance of some regional markets. This research integrates for the first time under a homogenous methodology the systematic analysis of all stock markets in the Gulf, identifies common trends and causes for differential behaviour and constitutes a key contribution toward the understanding of the functioning of the Gulf stock exchanges by domestic and foreign investors.