Doha: Qatar Exchange pursued its upswing trend yesterday, adding 1.22 points or 0.01 percent to advance to 9,239.22 points from 9,238.00 on Thursday.
The volume of the shares traded fell to 13,212,495 from 14,163,544 on Thursday and the value of shares decreased to QR452,588,086.26 from QR467,859,354.38 on Thursday.
Among the top gainers were Qatar Telecom which was up 2.14 percent to QR124.30, National Leasing rose 2.33 percent to QR37.35, United Development Company gained 0.98 percent to QR21.71 and Doha Insurance up by 2.94 percent to QR26.30.
The banking and financial sector index fell 1.26 points while consumer goods and services sector index added 0.64 points. The industrial sector lost 0.22 points while insurance sector dropped 0.14 points.
Meanwhile, Kuwait’s bourse suffered its largest one-day drop in seven months yesterday in a profit-taking move analysts said was long overdue, while UAE markets extended their bullish run and other regional exchanges were mixed.
Kuwait’s index lost three percent, down for a third session since Tuesday’s 53-month peak and its biggest daily decline since October 2012. “It was panic selling today rather than structured profit-taking but, nevertheless, it’s a long overdue corrective move,” said Fouad Darwish, head of brokerage at Global Investment House.
Those buyers who had driven the market to a 39.9 percent advance in the first five months of 2013 were mostly retail investors, who were now beginning to sell ahead of the summer, Darwish added.
Traditionally, many people depart the Gulf for the summer months due to the excessive heat, with investors reducing their positions before returning to the market later in the year.
Small and mid-cap stocks, normally the preserve of retail investors as they can be moved easier for quick results, slumped on Sunday, with Gulf Finance House, Abyaar Real Estate Development Co and Manazel Holding dropping 5.9, 7.3 and 7.8 percent respectively.
Larger stocks didn’t escape the negative tone, with Agility down 2.7 percent — trading ex-dividend — and National Industries Group 5.4 percent lower.
Elsewhere, Dubai’s measure rose 2.7 percent to hit a fresh 54-month high as mid-cap stocks surged.
Gulf Navigation and Dubai Financial Market jumped 14.9 and 14.7 percent respectively, with both stocks hitting the limit for the maximum daily rise.
Drake & Scull climbed 6.9 percent, extending 2013 gains to 54.8 percent.
Mid-caps are catching up to a rally in bluechips earlier this year as prices picked up to reflect improving fundamentals.
Dubai property prices partially recovered in recent months following a 50 percent-plus slump from their 2008 peak and banks reported improving earnings as provisions declined. UAE banks were heavily exposed to government debt, which has largely been restructured.
Emirates NBD, the best performing stock on Dubai’s bourse in 2013, held onto its 91.2 percent year-to-date gains.
“There’s no worry of a potential bubble as the momentum is on solid footing,” said Rami Sidani, Schroders Middle East’s head of investment, pointing out that while many exchanges around the world have recovered their post-financial crisis losses, UAE markets still have some way to go.
Dubai is still 61 percent below its 2008 pre-crisis peak, while the Dow Jones and S&P 500 indices have recovered their losses and recently recorded new all-time highs.
Agencies
