JEDDAH/DUBAI: Gulf Arab markets were mixed on Wednesday, with banking stocks again in the spotlight following a directive from UAE exchanges on the lenders’ Saudi exposure and a Morgan Stanley report on Saudi banks.

The Abu Dhabi and Dubai bourses asked banks to provide details of exposure to troubled Saudi conglomerates Saad Group and Algosaibi as part of regulatory measures.

The Abu Dhabi index eased 0.1 percent to 3,124 points, while the Dubai’s benchmark climbed 1.3 percent to 2,191 points.

The announcement triggered a flurry of statements by listed banks with details on whether they held any exposure and taken provisions.

“From an investor perspective the more information the better,” said Haissam Arabi, CEO and fund manager of Gulfmena Alternative Investments.

“I’d like to know what is going on because (the market) is overshadowed because of the lack of clarity on Saad and Gosaibi,” Arabi added.

In Dubai, two of the six listed banks, Dubai Islamic Bank and Shuaa Capital, closed lower, while the others ended unchanged or higher.

In Abu Dhabi, several banks ended in negative territory.

The main Abu Dhabi index edged slightly lower, despite a good performance of the real estate stocks.

Several Saudi banking stocks opened lower, following a preview on the sector by Morgan Stanley, which said it expected “net income under pressure (in the third quarter of 2009) on higher provisions and subdued fee income.”

Some of the early-trade losses, however, were reversed during the session, boosted by sentiment in international markets.

Samba Financial Group, Morgan Stanley’s top pick in the Saudi banking sector, gained nearly 5 percent, making it one of the strongest gainers of the day.

Of the seven regional exchanges, Saudi Arabia, Dubai and Bahrain edged higher, while the four other bourses posted losses. The Tadawul All-Share Index (TASI) increased 42.56 points to close at 6,322.04, with only 4 sectors closing negative, namely the Industrial Investments, down 0.02 percent, the Transport and the Media & Publishing sectors, both down 0.15 percent, and the Cement sector, down 0.29 percent.

On the other hand, market gains ranged from 0.04 percent in the Petrochemical sector to 1.35 percent in the Banks & Financial Services sector.

Overall market breadth was positive, with 74 advancers and 43 decliners giving an AD ratio of 1.72, the Jeddah-based Financial Transaction House (FTH) said in its daily market commentary.

Analysts expect more sideways trading in the following days, as investors will look out for more cues from international markets.

Qatar’s main measure fell 0.6 percent to 7,414 points.

Muscat’s main measure retreated 0.4 percent to 6,572 points.

The Kuwaiti index declined 0.2 percent to 7,817 points.

The Bahraini index rose 0.1 percent to 1,554 points.

— With input from agencies