09/05/2015 11:11 AST
Qatar Stock Exchange, which showcased 15 of its leading companies before global fund managers in London, saw its key index settle above 12,200 levels, making it the best performer among the Gulf bourses during the week, mainly lifted by small and micro cap equities.
Insurance, telecom, consumer goods and industrials were seen high in demand as the 20-stock Qatar Index gained about 1% during the week that saw a more than quadrupled earnings in the realty sector help the QSE listed companies show double-digit expansion in their cumulative net profits in the first quarter of this year.
However, the Gulf Cooperation Council markets largely came under selling pressure with Dubai declining 2.97%, Abu Dhabi (1.98%), Saudi Arabia (1.19%), Muscat (0.08%) and Bahrain (0.03%); even as Kuwait rose 0.31% during the week that saw Qatar Insurance Company win the bid to offer risk coverage to both Hamad International Airport and Doha International Airport.
Opening the week on stronger note, the market witnessed selling pressure on Monday to take the index to a low of 12,123 points. Strong buying interests in the subsequent two days helped it reach a high of 12,334 points on Wednesday; but only to see profit booking on the last day. Thus, the index settled at 12,282 points.
Qatari bourse has so far (year-to-date) reported a marginal 0.03% fall against Bahrain’s plunge of 2.55%, Kuwait’s 2.12% and Muscat’s 0.4%; while Saudi Arabia reported 16.62% surge, Dubai 8.73% and Abu Dhabi 0.57%.
The overall bullish path was supported by increased net buying support from domestic institutions and lower net selling by local and non-Qatari retail investors during the week that saw QSE chief executive Rashid bin Ali al-Mansoori disclose that the bourse witnessed a net (foreign funds) inflow of $1.25bn and about three-fold jump in average daily turnover ever since it was upgraded by MSCI and Standard and Poor's-Dow Jones last year.
However, foreign institutions’ net buying support weakened during the week that saw the Ministry of Economy and Commerce unveil a new macroeconomic model, which suggested diversification as imperative for Qatar’s long term growth.
The index that tracks Shariah-principled stocks was seen gaining much faster than the other indices in the market during the week that saw an expansion in the trading volume of the insurance and consumer goods stocks amid a decline in the overall volumes.
The 20-stock Total Return Index rose 0.97%, All Share Index (comprising wider constituents) by 1.03% and Al Rayan Islamic Index 2.17 during the week that saw more than 74% of the companies extend gains to investors.
Insurance stocks appreciated 5.23%, telecom (1.6%), consumer goods (1.34%), industrials (1.17%), banks and financial services (0.65%), real estate (0.48%) and transport (0.12%) during the week.
Of the 43 stocks, 32 gained, while only 10 declined and one was unchanged during the week that saw trading volume was largely skewed towards real estate and banking shares.
All of the eight consumer goods, seven each of the 12 banks and financial services and the nine industrials, four of the five insurers, three of the four realty, all of the two telecom and one of the three transport equities close higher during the week.
Major movers included QNB, Industries Qatar, Qatar Insurance, United Development Company, Qatari German Company for Medical Devices, Al Khaleej Takaful, Vodafone Qatar, Ooredoo, Qatar Islamic Bank, Qatari Investors Group, Salam International Investment and Gulf Warehousing during the week.
However, QIIB, Alijarah Holding, Dlala, Gulf International Services, Ezdan, Milaha and Nakilat were seen bucking the trend during the week.
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