Arab stocks close lower as investors eye second quarter results

Amman - Arab stock markets lost some ground this week as investors appeared wary of second quarter results. But financial analysts said Friday they expected regional bourses to remain steady, deriving momentum from rising oil prices. 'We believe regional stocks will keep up their upward thrust in the coming weeks, propelled by rising oil prices,' an Amman-based portfolio manager told the German Press Agency dpa. 'At the same time, investors will keep a close eye on the second quarter results of listed firms, given fears that many businesses could emerge in the red due to the repercussions of the global recession,' he said. Such concerns found expression in the Saudi bourse which witnessed a very volatile week despite surging oil prices that indicate the world's largest crude exporter will be able to sustain high public spending. The Tadawul All Share Index (TASI) of the Arab world's largest stock exchange shed 1.8 per cent this week, closing at 5,941.20 points. TASI is currently 23.7 per cent higher than the year's start, according to the weekly report of the Riyadh-based Bakheet Investment Group (BIG). 'This week's violent fluctuations indicate that investors are losing direction in their investment decision,' the report said. However, the BIG expected the Saudi market to derive force from decisions by the Capital Market Authority (CMA) to start trading of bonds and sukuk as of Saturday, and to put four new firms to public subscription. 'We believe that the Saudi market will be steady until listed companies start to release their financial results for the third quarter of the year, which gives clues as to the direction of the market, particularly blue chips,' the report said. Jordanian shares were also volatile this week as investors resorted to profit-taking moves ahead of the weekend, analysts said. The all-share index of the Amman Stock Exchange declined 1.52 per cent this week, closing at 2,910 points, according to the ASE weekly report. Kuwaiti shares retreated this week after a rally that lasted several weeks. Analysts cited the standoff between the government and the parliament as one of the key reasons behind the decline. The KSE all-share price index lost 1.1 per cent this week, to close at 8,277 points. United Arab Emirates stocks continued to score fresh gains this week, an indication that the UAE bourses of Dubai and Abu Dhabi were poised to go up further due to boosted confidence in markets, analyst Mohammad Afifi from the Dubai-based Al-Fajr Securities said. 'The fact that stocks remained bullish despite this week's strong profit-taking moves will convince more traders to enter the market,' he said. The benchmark prices of the stock exchanges of Dubai and Abu Dhabi gained 3.6 per cent and 2.3 per cent this week, closing respectively at 2,099 points and 2,868 points. Egypt's AGX30 index, measuring the performance of the market's 30 most active stocks, shed 0.8 per cent this week, closing at 6,193 points.