Gulf Markets Rise, Kuwait Down On Property Sector

Bourses across the Gulf gained on Monday along with global markets, with the exception of Kuwait , where property stocks dropped after a local developer reported a widening third-quarter loss.

“There is enough momentum to push markets right now and there are at the moment no negative external factors,” said John Sfakianakis, chief investment strategist at Saudi investment firm MASIC.

Dubai posted the biggest gain on Monday, jumping 1.5 percent, although analysts said the move reflected its increased volatility in the run-up to the Nov. 27 decision on the emirate’s bid to host the Expo 2020 world fair. Abu Dhabi’s bourse rose 1.1 percent.

Gulf airlines, led by Dubai’s state-owned Emirates and Abu Dhabi’s Etihad, ordered about $100 billion of planes on the first day of the Dubai Airshow on Sunday, a signal of optimism by the governments of the two emirates.

Major property developer Emaar rose 1.8 percent. Drake and Scull climbed 3.1 percent after it said a wholly owned German subsidiary won a 179 million dirham ($48 million) deal to build waste water treatment facilities in Egypt, suggesting the company’s efforts to expand its international business may be bearing fruit.

But the Dubai market – which sits on the region’s highest year-to-date gain of 73 percent – remains susceptible to large swings based on Expo-related speculation, said Amer Khan, fund manager at Shuaa Asset Management.

“I continue to expect the market to be volatile,” he said.

Saudi Arabia’s and Qatar’s bourses posted smaller gains at 0.3 percent and 0.7 percent. The two indexes have been rising steadily for the last two weeks, hitting five-year highs on what analysts said was year-end dividend-hunting.

“I think the momentum is still there to see the index and the market consolidating at higher levels,” MASIC’s Sfakianakis said of the Saudi index, which reached 8,408 points. “The index…is clearing away from 8,000 towards 8,500.”

KUWAIT

Kuwait’s index fell 0.6 percent to a two-week low after developer MENA Real Estate reported a third-quarter net loss of 304,000 dinars ($1.1 million) compared with a loss of 225,000 dinars in the same period of 2012.

The stock tumbled 8.2 percent and shares in other real estate companies, such as National Ranges (Mayadeen) and Investors Holding Group, also declined.

Egypt’s bourse rose 1.1 percent, posting gains for a second day after two weeks of profit-taking.

Local financial newspaper Al Mal reported on Monday, quoting an unnamed official, that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were about to pledge a further $9 billion in financing for the Cairo government in addition to the $12.9 billion already promised. Officials in the Gulf declined to comment.

MONDAY’S HIGHLIGHTS

DUBAI

* The index rose 1.5 percent to 2,856 points.

ABU DHABI

* The index rose 1.1 percent to 3,831 points.

SAUDI ARABIA

* The index climbed 0.3 percent to 8,408 points.

QATAR

* The index rose 0.7 percent to 10,359 points.

EGYPT

* The index rose 1.1 percent to 6,341 points.

KUWAIT

* The index fell 0.6 percent to 7,869 points.

BAHRAIN

* The index edged up 0.2 percent to 1,200 points.

OMAN

* The index edged up 0.06 percent to 6,769 points.

Source: Reuters