Qatar's stock market "may remain volatile and vulnerable to further sentiment-driven selling pressure" after FIFA Audit & Compliance Committee Independent Chair Domenico Scala said that Doha "could be stripped of World Cup hosting rights if evidence emerges of bribery in the bidding process," according to Olzhas Auyezov of REUTERS. Scala said on Sunday that "no evidence of vote-buying had been brought fourth yet, but if it surfaces, Russia and Qatar's winning bids for the 2018 and 2022 tournaments, respectively, would be invalidated." Investors in the Gulf state have "reacted nervously to all announcements since the initial arrests of several FIFA officials and the launch of criminal probes against them." Although most of government spending is "likely to continue with or without the cup, losing it will be a blow to Qatar's reputation and the sentiment of local retail investors" (REUTERS, 6/8). Auyezov reported in a separate piece Qatar's bourse "fell in early trade
on Monday." The Doha index "edged down" 0.4% as "most stocks fell." But "heavyweight" Qatar National Bank added 1.2%, offsetting some wider market losses (REUTERS, 6/8).
