31/08/2015 05:02 AST
Most Middle East stock markets rose but closed well off their intra-day highs on Sunday and
some edged lower as investors started selling into the region's rally, indicating sentiment was still shaky even after oil prices rebounded.
Saudi Arabia's main Tadawul All-Share Index, which surged as much as 4.6 percent early in the day, closed just 1.1 percent higher at 7,690 points. That left the index up 11 percent from a 29-month low hit last Monday, but still 15 percent below its level at the end of last month.
The petrochemical sector, up 3.2 percent, was the main support on Sunday after Brent oil climbed above $50 per barrel on Friday. The sector's margins are directly affected by oil prices and leading petrochemical producer Saudi Basic Industries Corp. surged 4.0 percent.
But some stocks went into the red late in the session, such as Al-Tayyar Travel, which tumbled 5.8 percent, and Banque Saudi Fransi, down 2.5 percent.
Shakeel Sarwar, head of asset management at Securities & Investment Co. (SICO) in Bahrain, said markets in the region were likely to remain jittery until oil prices stabilized.
"Right now I think the situation is so fluid, it becomes extremely difficult to build a solid investment case," he said.
Trading volumes in Riyadh fell for a third session in a row, another indication that the recovery was fragile. With low oil prices pushing state finances deep into the red, the Saudi government has not yet released a detailed plan for how the world's top oil exporter would handle an era of cheap oil that could last for years.
Elsewhere in the region, Dubai's stock index closed 1.1 percent higher at 3,690 points after jumping as much as 3.2 percent in early trade.
Developer DAMAC was the most traded stock, surging 7.0 percent after the firm called a shareholder meeting for Sept. 15 to approve its first cash dividend of 10 percent since it listed in Dubai in January.
Most other actively traded stocks were also from the property or related sectors. Heavyweight developer Emaar Properties jumped 2.8 percent, Union Properties rose 1.5 percent and mortgage lender Amlak Finance added 1.4 percent.
In addition to oil's rebound late last week, property stocks may be supported by hopes that the US Federal Reserve will postpone an interest rate increase which analysts had previously expected in September.
Those Fed officials who are anxious to raise rates said at an annual global central bankers' conference on Friday that continued market turmoil might lead the US central bank to delay tightening monetary policy. Most Gulf states keep their currencies pegged to the dollar and replicate the Fed's interest rate adjustments.
Ports operator DP World rose 5.7 percent, adding to Thursday's 8.7 percent gain. It has outperformed the market since Thursday, when the company said it might launch operations in Iran; it is one of a handful of listed logistics and transport firms in the Gulf that could benefit from the lifting of international sanctions against Iran.
Abu Dhabi's index slipped 0.2 percent to 4,454 points, while Qatar edged up 0.4 percent to 11,340 points. Petrochemicals and steel conglomerate Industries Qatar jumped 2.5 percent and was the main support for the Doha benchmark.
Egypt's bourse slipped 0.3 percent to 7,055 points as most blue chips pulled back after rising for three sessions in a row. But Pioneers Holding surged 6 percent after soaring 10 percent on Thursday, when it reported its second-quarter profit had more than tripled.
Arab News
Please wait...
