Middle East markets: Qatar index at eight-week high

Qatar's index ended at an eight-week high on Monday as Industries Qatar gained on expectations of strong earnings, while Egypt's benchmark fell on investors concerns about political uncertainty. Industries Qatar rose 1.8 percent. The company is forecast to post a net profit rise of 43 percent, according to an average of analyst estimates.
Qatar's benchmark rose 1 percent to end at its highest level since February 15, outperforming regional markets, a trend analysts expect to continue. Qatar National Bank jumped 3.4 percent to a 10-week high after posting a 34 percent rise in quarterly earnings. "We expect to continue the uptrend maybe to 9,000 points in the medium-term," said Hani Girgis, assistant chief dealer at Dlala brokerage. "The following results will support our trend." Egypt's benchmark fell to a new two-week low after the country's public prosecutor summoned former president Hosni Mubarak as part of probes into the killing of protesters and the embezzlement of public funds.
"It just doesn't make sense to put money in the Egyptian market. There is no opportunity coming from it because no one knows anything. There is no clear direction," said Teymour el-Derini of Naeem Brokerage. Telecom Egypt and Orascom Telecom dropped 2.8 and 1.6 percent respectively. The benchmark fell 1.3 percent, with only four stocks gaining. Dubai's index ended on an eight-week high as small-cap stocks rallied. Deyaar jumped 9.4 percent to an eight-week high after its largest one-day gain in nine-months. Shuaa Capital climbed 4.4 percent to a two-month high after newspapers quoted the investment bank as saying Tunisia's regulator had lifted a freeze on its brokerage accounts in the country. The benchmark gained 0.2 percent.
Abu Dhabi's benchmark climbed 0.4 percent to a month-high with banks lending support. Etisalat and National Bank of Abu Dhabi rose 0.5 and 0.9 percent respectively. The Saudi index edged up to a higher close for a third session in seven, as Mobily gained 2 percent. "The general tone of Q1 earnings thus far has been less than impressive which is giving the index a good reason to consolidate and prompting retail investors to get their hands dirty playing the Saudi insurance roulette," said Amro Halwani, a senior trader at Shuaa Capital in Riyadh.
"The Saudi banks that have reported (earnings) have yet again failed to impress the market, leaving investors apathetic as they await numbers from Samba and Al Rajhi to hopefully set a more positive tone," Halwani said. Al-Rajhi Bank said after market close that its first-quarter net profit rose 1 percent from a year earlier. Saudi Hollandi Bank rose 0.7 percent after reporting a 3.5 percent increase in first-quarter net profit, but still missed forecasts.