Arab bourses foggy pending second quarter results

Amman - Uncertainty prevailed at most of Arab stock markets this week as investors awaited the release of second-quarter corporate results, which they believed would decide the course of regional markets in the coming stage, financial analysts said Friday. 'We think Arab markets will continue to be directionless in the coming few weeks as investors monitor the publication of balance sheets of listed firms to decide their positions for the coming stage,' an Amman-based portfolio manager told the German Press Agency dpa. 'I believe regional markets will also be affected by the movement of oil prices and the indicators released about the performance of the world's recession-hit major economies that are supposed to provide clues for a way out of the current chaos,' he said. Saudi shares were volatile this week as the financial sector was negatively affected by hardships facing certain Saudi family businesses, mainly al-Saad and al-Qussaibi groups. The Tadawul All Share Index (TASI) of the Arab world's largest bourse shed 0.2 per cent this week, closing at 5,599.38 points. TASI is currently 16.6 per cent higher than the year's start, according to the weekly report of the Riyadh-based Bakheet Investment Group (BIG). The report expected the Saudi exchange to respond to the quarterly results of listed firms, particularly banks and the Saudi Arabian Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC). The Amman Stock Exchange (ASE) was also the scene for violent fluctuations this week due to what analysts described as waves of speculation and varying levels of liquidity that played havoc with prices. The all-share price index gained 0.95 per cent this week, closing at 2,742 points, led by the mining sector and the Arab Bank, the ASE weekly report said. Blue chip shares recovered after in the last two days of the week after the Arab Bank's management assured its shareholders that its financial position was unaffected by hundreds of millions of dollars it had extended as long-term loans to two troubled Saudi business groups. Kuwait's KSE all-share index fell 0.4 per cent, closing week at 8,108 points, against speculation that Kuwaiti stocks were set to rebound after the Interior Minister Sheikh Jaber Khalid al-Sabah survived a parliamentary no-confidence vote. The performance of the United Arab Emirates stock exchanges of Dubai and Abu Dhabi was mixed. Dubai's all-share price index lost 2.0 per cent this week, closing at 1,821 points, while Abu Dhabi's benchmark price gained 1.6 per cent, to close at 2,671 points. The Dubai bourse was negatively affected by reports that UAE banks extended loans to the two troubled Saudi groups of al-Saad and al- Qussaibi amounting to three billion dollars. Egyptian shares behaved differently from other Arab stocks due to strong gains scored by blue chips, analysts said. Egypt's AGX30 index, measuring the performance of the market's 30 most active stocks, climbed 8.9 per cent this week, closing at 5,965 points.