Saudi Arabia’s stock market extended its losses on Wednesday as profit-taking continued after it hit nine-month high last week, while the Qatar bourse snapped a 15-day winning streak.
Saudi Arabia’s benchmark index fell for a fifth session to close 1.4% lower, with Al Rajhi Bank losing 2.6%, while Saudi National Bank retreated 2.6% as the top lender traded ex-dividend.
Among other losers, Saudi Airlines Catering plunged 8%, to become the top loser on the Saudi index, after the firm missed quarterly profit estimates.
The Saudi stock market continued to see profit-taking while mixed company earnings could continue to affect sentiment, Daniel Takieddine, CEO MENA at BDSwiss, said.
“While increasing oil prices could improve sentiment, production cuts could become a source of concern,” he said.
Most Gulf markets rise on corporate earnings, oil; Saudi extends losses
The Qatari benchmark dropped 1.1%, snapping a 15-day winning streak, as most of the stocks on the index were in negative territory including Qatar Islamic Bank, which was down 1.7%.
In Abu Dhabi, the index gained 0.5%, with Q Holding soaring about 15%, hitting a five-month high, after receiving an offer from ADQ and IHC capital to combine their holdings in Modon Properties into Q Holding.
The Abu Dhabi bourse maintained its positive trend, helped by the strength in oil markets as well as the solid local fundamentals, Takieddine said.
Oil prices - a key catalyst for the Gulf’s financial markets - surged, trading near their highest levels since April, buoyed by crude and fuel product inventory data showing robust U.S. demand.
Dubai’s main share index finished 0.2% higher, trading at eight year high, helped by a 0.6% gain in blue-chip developer Emaar Properties.
Outside the Gulf, Egypt’s blue-chip index eased 0.3%, extending losses from the previous session.
Egypt’s net foreign assets (NFAs) fell further into deficit in June, with the gap widening by 82.1 billion Egyptian pounds ($2.66 billion) from the previous month to negative 837.3 billion pounds, according to central bank data.
======================================= SAUDI ARABIA fell 1.4% to 11,478 ABU DHABI rose 0.5% to 9,826 DUBAI added 0.2% to 4,084 QATAR dropped 1.1% to 10,983 EGYPT lost 0.3% to 17,456 BAHRAIN eased 0.2% to 1,988 OMAN rose 0.2% to 4,799 KUWAIT down 0.7% to 7,980 =======================================
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