Qatar stocks outperform again in sluggish region

Qatar’s stock market edged higher on Tuesday after breaking major technical resistance, but other markets in the region were sluggish, held back by soft oil prices and mixed corporate earnings.

The Qatari index climbed 0.6 percent to 10,649 points in a broad-based rise, with nine of the ten most heavily traded stocks gaining. Trading volume fell from Monday’s high level but remained active.

On Monday the index had broken above its December and March peaks at 10,490 and 10,502 points, triggering a “reverse head and shoulders” pattern formed by the highs and lows since December and pointing up in the long term to around 12,600 points.

Qatar Islamic Bank surged 3.9 percent after reporting a second-quarter net profit of 562.6 million riyals ($154.5 million); the 13.7 percent year-on-year advance beat the 524.3 million riyals average forecast of analysts polled by Reuters.

Commercial Bank of Qatar (CBQ) initially fell after Turkish conglomerate Anadolu Industry Holding decided to exercise a put option to sell CBQ the 25 percent of Turkey’s Alternatifbank that it does not already own. But the bank, which was due to report quarterly earnings after the close, rose in late trade to end up 1.4 percent.

Qatar International Islamic Bank rose 2.0 percent after it said profit in the first half of this year edged up to 443 million riyals from 438 million riyals a year earlier.

However, United Development fell 1.8 percent after it said first-half profit dropped to 332 million riyals from 557 million riyals.

Saudi Arabia’s stock market was dampened by some weak earnings. The Saudi stock index <.TASI lost 0.5 percent as Saudi Arabian Mining Co (Ma’aden) slid 3.9 percent. It posted a 51 percent year-on-year drop in quarterly net profit as sales revenues were hit by low commodity prices, although the profit was at the high end of analysts’ estimates.

Saudi Airlines Catering fell 1.6 percent after announcing a 17 percent decline in quarterly profit.

Al Rajhi Bank, the kingdom’s second-largest lender by assets, reported a 5.7 percent rise in second-quarter net profit that was broadly in line with analysts’ forecasts. Its shares fell 0.4 percent.

Dubai’s index fell 0.3 percent in a broad-based decline, although Emaar Properties added 0.7 percent. The shares began rising on Monday after a local consultancy report suggested the emirate’s real estate market might recover in the second half of this year.

The Abu Dhabi index edged down 0.1 percent, butAbu Dhabi Commercial Bank gained 1.5 percent after slightly exceeding analysts’ forecasts with a 12.3 percent drop in second-quarter net profit. It earned 1.13 billion dirhams ($307.7 million); analysts had forecast 1.07 billion dirhams.

TUESDAY’S HIGHLIGHTS

SAUDI

* The index dropped 0.5 percent to 6,647 points.

DUBAI

* The index fell 0.3 percent to 3,526 points

ABU DHABI

* The index edged down 0.1 percent to 4,583 points.

QATAR

* The index climbed 0.6 percent to 10,649 points.

KUWAIT

* The index fell 0.2 percent to 5,371 points.

OMAN

* The index edged down 0.1 percent to 5,839 points.

BAHRAIN

* The index edged down 0.1 percent to 1,163 points

Source: Reuters