Arab stocks falter under Egypt impact

05/02/2011 00:00 AST

Arab stock markets plummeted across the board last week as investors came under psychological pressure from fallout of the Egyptian uprising, financial analysts said Friday.

However, they believed the surging oil prices provided a positive factor that will help prop up regional markets in the medium and long terms. “I believe Arab socks stand to suffer more if the Egyptian crisis drags on,” an Amman-based portfolio manager told Arab News. He said oil prices, which had crossed the level of 100 dollars a barrel, would provide a “catalyst” for regional stock markets. “Higher oil prices mean larger surplus petrodollars, which will seek investment opportunities, including in Middle East stock exchanges,” he added.

The Egyptian bourse is due to re-open with trimmed trading hours on Sunday after a weeklong closure to avert further losses, officials said.

The capitalization of the Egyptian stock exchange shrank by $12 billion, or 15.7 percent, on Jan. 26 and 27, a development that prompted the closure of the bourse.

Saudi shares fluctuated violently last week due to losses incurred by the Egyptian bourse amid reports that 12 listed Saudi firms were involved in Egyptian projects.

The Tadawul All-Share Index (TASI) of the Saudi stock exchange shed 2.75 percent on weekly basis after plunging more than 6 percent on Saturday, the first day of the trading week.

The Saudi benchmark, which closed the week at 6,513.28 points, found support from rising oil prices, given the status of Saudi Arabia as the world’s largest oil exporting country, analysts said. Saudi analyst Mohammad Anqari attributed the surging oil prices mainly to the Egyptian unrest and fears on the part of Western governments and oil strategists that the uprising could lead to the closure of the Suez Canal and force oil tankers to go around the Cape of Good Hope.

Kuwait’s KSE all-share index fell 2.44 percent last week under the impact of the geopolitical factors, closing at 6,774 points.

The benchmarks of the United Arab Emirates stock exchanges of Dubai and Abu Dhabi declined by 0.87 percent and 0.79 percent last week to close respectively at 1,581 points and 2,645 points.

Jordanian shares were the least affected by the Egyptian uprising in the region due to the almost negligible Jordanian investments in Egypt, analysts said.

The all-share index of the Amman Stock Exchange gained 2.4 percent on weekly basis, closing at 2,402 points, according to the ASE weekly report.

Arab News