Gulf markets hit their stride

BULL RUN: Gulf markets seem to have found their stride with indexes from Doha to Dubai posting gains and Abu Dhabi touching another two-year high. (Getty Images)

Abu Dhabi’s benchmark hit a fresh two-year high on Tuesday while Oman lingered around its all-time record as stocks across the much of the Gulf posted gains.

Dubai’s main index also closed higher, building on momentum on the back of a six-day surge, while Qatar continued its blistering bull run.

Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB) skyrocketed to help the index jump to a high not seen in over two years. The bank gained 6.36% in heavy trading after an announcement it is looking to double profits by 2010.

“There are a lot of institutions and foreigners buying Abu Dhabi banks right now and any positive news will move a share,” Alaa El Din Moustafa, chief dealer in Dubai at EFG-Hermes, told newswire Reuters.

The index closed on 5,013.88 points, up 0.36%

In Dubai it was Emaar Properties that pushed the market higher. The giant developer gained 2.59% to lift the benchmark 0.99% to close on 5,777.10 points. Arabtech, the Dubai-based construction company, also contributed a solid performance, posting gains of 5.05%.

Profit-taking in Oman saw this year’s best performing Gulf index ebb slightly of the second consecutive record close posted on Monday. The loss comes after a massive rally which saw it gain 4.1% in the eight trading days prior to Monday’s record.

Bank Muscat, which has added more than 6% this month to Monday's close, gave back gains of 0.53% while Bank Dhofar also slipped 2.56%.

“A correction is to be expected; we could see the index fall about 70 points,” Shantonu Roy, a senior research analyst at Muscat-based Amwal Investment, told Reuters.

“The bull run is still on because of growth in Oman's economy and high oil prices; this is attracting investment,” Roy said. Oil hit an all-time high above $118 on Tuesday.

Muscat’s index ended on 11,196.18 points, just 0.02% down on Monday's record close.

Saudi Arabia, the Gulf’s largest market, closed higher for a third consecutive day, led by gains from Al-Rajhi Bank and Kingdom Holding. The two added 4.66% and 2.33% to see the index close 0.56% up on 9,692.96 points.

Qatar continued its bull run with the index closing up for the 15th time in 16 trading days. Barwa Real Estate surged for a second day after the developer announced first quarter profits almost doubled from this time last year. The stock gained 6.84%.

Qatar, which has piled on 18% so far this year to become the second-best performing index behind Oman, added another 0.12% to close on 11,294.68 points.

Bank stocks weighed on Bahrain’s benchmark, dragging the index down for its third consecutive close.

Gulf Finance House slipped 3.38% and Ithmaar fell 2.74% to bring the index down 0.59%. It closed on 2,828.62 points.

Kuwait was the only other index to fall in an otherwise positive day for Gulf stocks. Telecom Zain, finished the session down 2.15%. The index fell 0.2% and finished on 2,828.62 points.

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