DUBAI: Kuwait’s bourse tumbled to a two-week low yesterday as investors sold shares in small-cap companies ahead of a deadline to report corporate earnings, while other regional markets were mixed in thin trade as investors await first-quarter earnings.
Kuwait firms must publish fourth-quarter results by March 31 and many have yet to do so. Failure to meet this deadline could lead to their shares being suspended, sparking yesterday’s sell-off.
More than 50 companies face this possible sanction, according to Fouad Darwish, head of brokerage at Global Investment House.
Gulf Investment House and Abyaar Real Estate dropped 7 and 2.9 percent respectively.
The main index lost 2.1 percent, its biggest daily drop in five months and lowest close since March 11. The market is still up 12.7 percent year-to-date.
In the UAE, Dubai’s bourse climbed 0.2 percent in muted trade. Many investors are wary of increasing their exposure due to fears a sharp correction may be imminent following an early-year surge.
The index has been trapped in a 100-point range since hitting a 39-month peak in late February, raising worries of a sharp sell-off.
Trading volumes have dipped in recent sessions as investors wait for first-quarter earnings.
Abu Dhabi’s benchmark advanced 0.2 percent, extending 2013 gains to 14 percent. In Saudi Arabia, real estate stocks extended gains on bets the sector will benefit from a new mortgage law being introduced. The sector’s index rose 1.5 percent to a fresh 10-month high.
Banking and petrochemical stocks also supported the main index, which climbed 0.4 percent to its highest since Jan. 12.
Al Rajhi Bank and Yanbu National Petrochemical Co. added 0.8 and 1.9 percent respectively.
Elsewhere, Egypt’s main benchmark slipped 0.5 percent in thin trading as investors hesitate to increase exposure as a weak political and economic backdrop weighs on sentiment.
National Societe Generale Bank jumped 10 percent with 16,591 shares bring trades, which analysts say may be an error trade.
Reuters
