DUBAI: Egypt’s bourse lifted from an 11-week low yesterday as bargain hunters returned after two sessions of heavy selling, while UAE markets fell in an otherwise regional uptrend.
Cairo’s bluechips recovered with Orascom Construction Industries rising 0.3 percent.
OCI received a notification from the Egyptian Tax Authority to discuss an alleged tax claim next Sunday, sources said. Egypt’s public prosecutor earlier this week barred OCI’s chief executive Nassef Sawiris from leaving the country, as part of an investigation into tax evasion.
Commercial International Bank climbed 1.5 percent and Egypt Kuwait Holding rose 4.6 percent.
Cairo’s index gained 0.4 percent, helped by buying from regional investors that were net buyers for the day.
“The index had a strong support near 5,200 and we might see a minor rebound towards 5,350 after the strong selling,” said Mohabeldeen Agena, head of technical analysis at Cairo’s Beltone Financial. “The rebound is normal but the support doesn’t look like it will hold in the medium-term.”
Elsewhere, global gains helped lift sentiment in Saudi Arabia. The index advanced 0.7 percent, edging up from a two-month low.
Large-caps led the climb. Al Rajhi Bank gained 0.8 percent and Saudi Basic Industries Corp (Sabic), the world’s largest chemicals company, added 0.3 percent, helping the sector’s index climbs 0.9 percent.
Brent crude futures rose towards $112 a barrel yesterday, tracking a rally in equity markets and expectations of a revival in demand growth following positive economic data from the United States and China.
Saudi petrochemical stocks tend to track oil prices, with crude impacting their bottom line. “The rallies seen in global markets point to higher demand for petrochemical products and this is what supported the Saudi market,” said Turki Fadaak, Head of Research at Al Bilad Investment.
Elsewhere, Kuwait’s index climbed 0.3 percent and Qatar added 0.2 percent.
UAE markets however, bucked the regional trend. Dubai’s bourse slumped to a four-week closing low after Mashreq’s share price tumbles in a single trade.
Shares in Mashreq, Dubai’s second largest listed lender by market value, lost 10 percent on a single trade of 1,168 shares.
The bank trades sporadically and has a free float of just 8 percent, exaggerating share price moves.
Builder Arabtec fell 2.9 percent. It has plunged 31 percent in the five sessions since the company announced plans to raise $1.8bn in capital that would be dilutive to shareholders.
Dubai’s index slipped 0.1 percent and Abu Dhabi’s benchmark declined 0.6 percent, down for a fifth session since last week’s 39-month high.
First Gulf Bank dipped 2.2 percent to 13.25 dirhams, trimming 2013 gains to 12.8 percent. The stock rallied 51.6 percent last year, backed by strong earnings growth that beat estimates in the last three quarters.
The bank’s shares will reach ex-dividend on Thursday, with the lender poised to pay out 0.83 dirhams per share.
Commercial Bank International and Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank declined 9.7 percent and 0.5 percent respectively. Reuters
