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Gulf markets post mixed results

Gulf markets posted mixed results on Monday as nervous investors awaited first quarter earnings, the next expected catalyst that will determine which way stocks will trade in the short-term, analysts said.

Dubai and Abu Dhabi both fell on sluggish performances by banking and property stocks, while Saudi Arabia closed up for the third time in four trading days, led by Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic).
“With the current news vacuum, we expect first-quarter earnings to be the next catalyst for the markets,” Walid Khalfallah, head of equity research at HSBC Middle East, told newswire Bloomberg.

The markets overall have had a rough start to the year with the MSCI GCC Countries Index, a measure of more than 140 companies in six Gulf states, declining 10% so far as uncertainty about the health of the global economy weighs on investors' minds.

It was Sabic and Saudi Electricity that led the Saudi Stock Exchange, the region’s largest market by capitalisation, to a higher close. The two stocks ended the day up 2.43% and 1.79% respectively, lifting the index 1.11% to close on 9,410.18 points.

Saudi’s main index, the worst performing in the GCC, is down around 19% so far this year.

In Dubai it was Emaar Properties, the largest listed developer in the region, that led the decline. Emaar shares shed 1.32%, pulling the index down 1.45% to close on 5,482.25 points.

In Abu Dhabi Aldar Properties slid after the UK's Times newspaper reported the emirate’s largest real estate company is considering bidding for a UK-based developer.

National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD) also retreated, finishing the day down 2.76% and helping Abu Dhabi's index to close 0.73% lower at 4,738.06 points. The loss snaps four consecutive trading days of gains for the index.

Qatar built on a blistering start to the week which saw Doha’s benchmark index leap 2.14% in Sunday’s trading.

The market was helped on Monday by strong performances from Qatar International Islamic Bank, up 2.27%, and Industries Qatar, up 0.52%, to close in the black for the fourth consecutive trading day. The index ended up 0.21% on 9,970.70 points.

Oman too ended the day in positive territory. Shares of Bank Muscat surged 4.87%, helping lift the index 1.8% higher to close on 10,734.94 points. .

Kuwait ended the day lower on the back of poor performances from Gulf Bank, which fell 2.56%, and Ahli United Bank, down just under 3%. The index, the second strongest of in the Gulf this year, extended losses into the second day, closing down 0.23% on 14,488.70 points.

Bahrain's index slipped half a percent as Ahli United Bank also weighed on its benchmark. The index closed on 2,847.62 points.

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