Doha: Qatar Exchange (QE) index gained 77.65 points or 0.68 percent when the bourse closed trading at 11,488.41 points yesterday. The market capitalisation increased to QR620.65bn from QR617.47bn on Thursday.
Indices of five sectors swung back to the green while transport went down 0.65 percent to 2,380.61 points and consumer goods and services dipped slightly by 0.17 percent to 6,804.18 points. Real estate was top gainer, up 1.99 percent to 2,345.06 points followed by insurance (4,117.37 points), industries (3,741.46 points), banks and financial services (3,116.69 points) and telecoms (1,310.33 points).
Of the 43 companies listed, shares of 40 saw trading. From these 27 gained, 11 went down and two remained unchanged. Shares of Widam Food Company gained the most, up 4.46 percent to
QR58.50 from Thursday’s QR56. Gulf Warehousing declined 3.45 percent to QR56 from Thursday’s QR58. Ezdan Holding jumped 3.6 percent, recovering from a slide in the previous session when it went ex-dividend.
Meanwhile, most Middle East stock markets rose after brief sell-offs at the end of last week triggered by the escalation of military conflict in Yemen.
But while the start of the operation triggered profit-taking by retail investors, many analysts think the Gulf states will be able to confine the conflict to Yemen’s borders, as they have with past instability in that country. The operation may cost the Saudi government billions of dollars but with over $700bn of net foreign assets, it can afford the cost.
The main Saudi index climbed 1.9 percent, largely because of property developer Jabal Omar, which surged 5.8 percent. The company said on Thursday that it had sold residential units worth SR70.1m ($18.7m) and would use the proceeds to fund further construction.
Saudi Kayan Petrochemical Co jumped 2.7 percent after it restarted its olefins plant in Jubail following an extended shutdown. Its parent company Saudi Basic Industries Co gained 1.0 percent. Meanwhile, Saudi International Petrochemical Co (Sipchem) slipped 0.3 percent after the company said its affiliates would shut down two plants for maintenance.
Dubai’s index rose 0.9 percent as most stocks rose. Builder Arabtec was the most traded stock, jumping 3.6 percent to Dh2.30 after bouncing from a 14-month low of Dh2.08 in the previous session. Abu Dhabi’s bourse slipped 0.06 percent. Large lenders First Gulf Bank and National Bank of Abu Dhabi, down 2.1 and 1.8 percent respectively, were the main drags.
Markets in Kuwait and Oman rebounded widely and rose 1.6 and 1.2 percent respectively after dipping at the end of last week.
Egypt’s market inched up 0.1 percent. Juhayna Food Industries was the main support, jumping 2.3 percent. The company announced a 0.1 pound dividend this month, having paid none for 2013.
Also, another firm in the same sector, Edita, priced its public offer at the top of the announced range at the end of last week. Electro Cables Egypt rose 1.0 percent after posting a 466 percent increase in 2014 net profit.
HIGHLIGHTS
SAUDI ARABIA: The index rose 1.9 percent to 9,071 points.
DUBAI: The index added 0.9 percent to 3,438 points.
ABU DHABI: The index inched down 0.06 percent to 4,370 points.
EGYPT: The index added 0.1 percent to 9,063 points.
KUWAIT: The index rose 1.6 percent to 6,323 points.
OMAN: The index climbed 1.2 percent to 6,189 points.
BAHRAIN: The index added 1.0 percent to 1,459 points.
QNA/Reuters
