13/10/2010 00:00 AST
After showing an upward trend for four days, Qatar Exchange was down yesterday 73.91 points or 0.94 percent to 7,756.27 points from 7,830.18 on Monday.
The volume of shares traded down to 6,277,069 from 8,115,222 on Monday, and the value of shares fell to QR278,391,232.30 from QR293,374,509.00 on Monday.
Among the top losers were Commercial Bank of Qatar whose shares dropped by 1.35 percent to QR87.80, Rayan lost 1.27 percent to QR15.60, Qatar Nakilat down 1.03 percent to QR19.20 and Industries Qatar fell 0.83 to QR107.00.
The banking and financial sector fell 142.57 points and the insurance sector down 47.06 points. The industrial sector lost 34.57 points and the Services sector dropped 37.40 points.
Meanwhile, Middle East markets ended mixed yesterday as investors remained on the sidelines awaiting quarterly earnings or booked profits from a recent regional rally.
Real estate stocks weighed on Dubai’s index which retreated after hitting a five-month closing high on Monday with bellwether Emaar Properties falling 0.8 percent and Arabtec down 1.8 percent.
“Dubai’s market hit the resistance level of 1,750, 1,755 so we were due for some profit-taking,” said Musa Haddad, head trader in asset management at National Bank of Abu Dhabi.
“It’s the season of earnings so if institutions want to get into the market on the fundamental side, they’ll wait until the Q3 figures, and depending on the momentum from that, they will get in. The longer term trend is still up.”
Saudi lenders came under selling pressure after central bank governor said they should be conservative and provisions for non-performing loans should exceed 100 percent of their value.
“In my estimation, the provisions should exceed 100 percent of bad loans,” Muhammad Al Jasser said in an interview with Al Arabiya television aired yesterday. “We as a central bank want banks to be conservative.”
Hours later, Al Rajhi Bank, the Gulf’s biggest Islamic lender by market value, posted an 8.6-percent fall in third-quarter earnings after it booked more provisions for loans.
Shares in Al Rajhi ended flat and earnings were announced after market hours.
In Egypt, the market ended 0.3 percent higher after reports that Egypt’s largest steel producer, Ezz Steel, may bid for new production licences.
Financial Daily Al Mal said Ezz was considering a bid for the licences offered by the Industrial Development Authority.
Agencies
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