27/09/2014 09:41 AST
Domestic institutions’ sell-off triggered a bearish spell in the Qatar Stock Exchange, whose key index lost a sizeable 476 points to settle below the 14,000 mark during the week.
Profit booking, especially at large and mid cap equities, resulted in the bourse’s capitalisation to erode more than QR23bn during the week that saw Standard and Poor’s-Dow Jones formally place QSE in the higher orbit of emerging market.
An across the board selling – particularly in the banking, real estate and industrials counters – led the QSE main index shrank 3.31% to 13,874.97 points during the week that saw global credit rating agency Standard and Poor’s say that Qatar will have to wait for another two years to see whether its sovereign rating will be revised.
In comparison, Saudi Arabia fell 2.69%, Abu Dhabi (2.02%), Dubai (0.85%) and Muscat (0.61%); while Kuwait and Bahrain rose 0.75% and 0.13% respectively during the week that featured a QSE announcement that it is all set to review its index methodology as part of broader measures to improve the liquidity in the market.
QSE has reported 33.68% gains year-to-date (YTD) against Dubai (49.99%), Saudi Arabia (26.12%), Abu Dhabi (19.52%), Bahrain (17.63%), Muscat (9.14%) and Kuwait (1.4%).
However, local retail investors were seen increasingly buying stocks during the week that saw Gulf Helicopters (GHC), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Gulf International Services, take delivery of the first two AW189 super medium helicopters in offshore configuration.
Banks and financial services stocks plunged 4.07%, realty (3.66%), industrials (2.97%), insurance (2.14%), telecom (1.9%), transport (1.37%) and consumer goods (0.95%) during the week that saw Masraf Al Rayan put on hold its plans to acquire a stake in Libyan bank.
More than 90% of the traded companies were in the red during the week which saw trade volume largely skewed towards realty and banks, which together accounted for more than 76% of the total trade volume.
The 20-stock Total Return Index shed 3.31%, All Share Index (comprising wider constituents) by 3.18% and Al Rayan Islamic Index by 3.05% during the week, which saw Ezdan and Masraf Al Rayan dominate the trading ring in terms of both volume and value.
Of the 43 stocks, only two advanced, while 39 declined and two were unchanged during the week that witnessed Al Meera Consumer Goods Company establish a limited liability entity with Regency Group and Aramex Regional.
11 of the 12 banks and financial services; all of the nine industrials; seven of the eight consumer goods; four of the five insurers; all of the four real estate; and two each of the two transport and the three transport stocks closed lower during the week.
Major losers included Industries Qatar, QNB, Qatar Islamic Bank, Commercial Bank, Doha Bank, International Islamic, Masraf Al Rayan, Dlala, Barwa, United Development Company, Mazaya Qatar, Vodafone Qatar, Ooredoo and Nakilat during the week.
Market capitalisation eroded 3.06% to QR739.24bn with large cap equities melting 3.58%, mid (3.39%), small (2.21%) and micro (1.32%) during the week. Micro, small, mid and large micro cap stocks have gained YTD 50.12%, 38.41%, 29.69% and 26.11% respectively.
Foreign institutions were net sellers to the tune of QR113.99mn against net buyers of QR263.92mn the previous week.
Domestic institutions’ net selling sunk to QR173.96mn compared to QR288.43mn the week ended September 18.
Local retail investors’ net buying soared to QR253.76mn against QR82.79mn the previous week.
Non-Qatari individual investors turned net buyers to the extent of QR34.47mn compared with net profit taking of QR57.95mn.
A total of 66.81mn shares valued at QR2.71bn changed hands across 25,776 transactions.
Gulf Times
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