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Markets claw back losses

Markets across the Gulf ended slightly higher on Tuesday, clawing back some of the losses suffered during a woeful stretch in recent weeks that saw indexes across the region plummet.

Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Kuwait, Qatar and Oman all finished up, while Saudi Arabia and Bahrain traded sideways for the most part, dipping marginally.
Emaar Properties led the recovery in Dubai, posting a 2.74% gain to edge the market slightly higher for the second day running.

Dubai Financial Market Company also continued Monday’s rebound, jumping 3.73% to push the benchmark index 1.53% higher to close on 5,433.62 points.

“We are approaching the first-quarter earnings season and the results are going to be driving the market higher in the coming period,” Amr Diab, head of Gulf Arab institutional sales at EFG-Hermes, told newswire Reuters.

Sorouh Real Estate and telecom Etisalat combined to drive Abu Dhabi’s main index higher, posting gains of 1.26% and 4.21% respectively. The capital’s benchmark index finished the day 1.27% higher on 9,126.07 points.

“Some locals are buying now the market is picking up” Ahmad Elrawy, head of trading at Dubai Financial Trading told ArabianBusiness.com.

“We think we have a positive view on the market in the coming quarters,” he said, adding that “most of the institutions expect a growth of 30% over the next year”.

Qatar closed higher by almost 1%, helped along by positive performances by banks. Qatar Islamic Bank and Commercial Bank of Qatar kicked in 2.45% and 1.3% respectively to push the index 0.93% high to end the day on 9,643.79 points.

“From today, we could start to see a consolidation phase supported by expectations of first-quarter results, but the index needs to stay above 9,600 points to maintain its momentum,” Samer Al-Jaouni, head of international brokerage at Ali Bank in Doha, told Reuters.

Kuwait ended higher by 0.88% to close on 14,413.30 points with Burgan Group Holding and Al-Safat Investment Company pitching in with solid gains.

Oman's main index gained 0.82% to end on 10,185.30 points. The rise was led by Raysut Cement and Oman National Investment Company, which contributed 2.92% and 7.58% respectively.

Meanwhile, shares of Al-Rajhi Bank and SABB Bank held Saudi’s benchmark slightly lower. The two fell 1.2% and 2.49% respectively to push the main index down 0.1% to close on 9,126.07 points.

The kingdom’s benchmark, the worst performer of the Gulf this year, is down almost 20% so far for 2008.

Bahrain’s main index fell slightly, finishing the day on 2,789.89 points.

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