Financial Tribune - Results of a study by the Majlis Research Center, the research arm of the parliament, indicate a decline in the security climate for investment and business last autumn (Sept-Dec 2018) compared to the summer of that year.

Comparing hard data with results from surveys across various businesses, the powerful think tank presented the outcome of the research in terms of an investment security index.

Accordingly, the index stood at 6.43 points in autumn out of 10 (10 being the riskiest), up 0.11 point compared to the summer of 2018.

The study, published on the MRC website, is the fourth of its kind. The figure has been soaring from 5.98 reported for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017-18 to 6.15 for the spring of 2018-19, and 6.32 last summer.

Decline in the business climate, among other things, shows that the key factors contributing to a better and secure environment have apparently failed to improve.

MRC is of the opinion that stability and security of investment can be sustained in its entirety if macroeconomic variables (inflation and currency rates) are stable, or at least predictable.