DOHA: Qatari stocks recovered yesterday after two days of continuous slide prompted by a global trend. The benchmark index of the Qatari bourse regained 333.23 points, or 3.15 percent of lost ground, as it climbed back to 10,905.73.
The market capitalization of the bourse (Qatar Exchange) that reflects investor wealth, obviously, also regained QR15.49bn of the QR41bn lost last Sunday and Monday.
The turnover increased to QR517.91m with trading volume being 11.78 million shares across 7,544 deals.
All indices on the exchange showed positive indications and gained, with QE Al Rayan Islamic Index gaining the most (3.15 percent).
Buying support mainly came from small Qatari investors with their trading value being QR217m against sell worth QR190m.
Qatari institutions, though, sold more than they bought and so was the case with foreign institutional investors.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s stock market surged 7.4 percent yesterday as the region rebounded from several days of heavy selling, encouraged by stronger oil prices and rising global bourses.
The main Saudi stock index’s leap to 7,543 points was accompanied by the highest trading volume since May 2014, a positive technical signal. It followed a slide which had taken the index down 23 percent in August, erasing over $100bn of market value.
The bourse’s rebound, which accelerated in late trade, partly eased concern about pressure on the Saudi riyal’s peg to the US dollar. One-year dollar/riyal forwards fell 15 percent and five-year Saudi credit default swaps , used to insure against a sovereign debt default, dropped to 100 basis points from 120.
Fund managers are unwilling to say Gulf markets have bottomed, though, as long as oil prices haven’t established a clear floor. Technical indicators suggested the stock markets were very oversold for the short term, making a temporary rebound likely.
Nevertheless, yesterday’s recovery in Saudi blue chips suggested some institutional investors felt the market had become reasonably valued after its slide.
Top petrochemical firm Saudi Basic Industries soared its 10 percent daily limit, as did Alinma Bank. Miner Ma’aden gained 8.4 percent.
Dubai’s stock index surged 4.6 percent to 3,558 points, Abu Dhabi climbed 1.6 percent.
United Arab Emirates real estate shares in particular were bought back, with blue chip Emaar Properties up 3.4 percent and Damac Properties surging 7.7 percent. Abu Dhabi’s Aldar Properties gained seven percent.
Some speculative shares favoured by Dubai retail investors soared. Amlak Finance jumped its daily 15 percent limit and builder Arabtec added 9.8 percent.
Egypt’s market rose 2.8 percent as China’s decision to cut interest rates and bank reserve requirements eased, at least temporarily, the panic in emerging markets.
All of the 10 most heavily traded Egyptian stocks rose with beaten-down property developer Palm Hills Development up 8.7 percent.
The Peninsula/Reuters
