Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman hit their highest closes since 2008, while Dubai made its largest gain for over two weeks.
OT rose 6.5 percent and Mobinil added 1 percent, helping Egypt's index climbed 2.8 percent to 7,448 points - its highest close since Sept. 21, 2008.
The Tadawul All-Share index (TASI) rose 0.37 percent to 6,894.55 - its highest finish since late September 2008. We Six sectors closed the day with losses, which ranged from 0.01 percent in both the Insurance and Real Estate Development sectors, to a loss of 0.95 percent in the Media & Publishing sector. Positive sector activity on the other hand ranged from a gain of 0.16 percent in the Telecom and IT sector, to a gain of 1.07 percent in the Retail sector. Overall market breadth was still positive, with 64 advancers and 50 decliners recording an AD ratio of 1.28, the Jeddah-based Financial Transaction House (FTH) said in its daily market commentary.
Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC) climbed 0.2 percent to a 17-month high after earnings of affiliate Saudi Arabia Fertilizers Co. (SAFCO) beat forecasts. SAFCO fell 0.7 percent, having surged on Saturday.
Emaar Properties rose 6.8 percent after its Indian unit said it would launch its $770 million initial public offering in 90 days.
Dubai's index rose 3.4 percent to 1,825 points from a two-week low.
Industries Qatar (IQ) rose 2.4 percent after a unit bought a stake in a Saudi steel producer. The Qatari index rose 1.2 percent to 7,723 points.
Kuwaiti banks slid as its index fell for a second session since hitting a five-month high on Wednesday. The measure slipped 0.2 percent to 7,552 points.
Zain ended flat, but is up 28 percent since saying it would sell African assets for $9 billion.
The Bahraini index fell 2.3 percent to 1,537 points.
- With input from agencies
