"Investors are repositioning
for stocks - it's not about sectors right now, but about earnings," said
Safaa Zbib, head of research at Kuwait and Middle East Financial
Investment Co. As the quarter nears its end, stocks with stable dividends and earnings would perform well in the short term, he said. The
index rose 0.5 percent to 6,036 points — its highest close since Aug.
4, as Kuwait Finance House rose 3.3 percent, Gulf Bank climbed 2 percent
and Zain gained 3 percent. In Saudi Arabia, the Tadawul All-Share Index (TASI) edged up 0.04 percent to 6,072 points. In Egypt, the main index slumped to a five-week low with thin volumes plaguing trade. It fell 1.2 percent to 4,485 points. "The volumes are still low and there's not much news moving the market," said Mohamed Shalaby of Cairo Capital Securities. Heavyweight Orascom Construction Industries (OCI) dropped 1.3 percent. OCI said on Tuesday it planned to invest up to $130 million in Rwanda within four years to build a methane power plant. Citadel
Capital lost 3.8 percent while Arab Cotton Ginning shed 8 percent after
a newspaper said on Tuesday custom duties may be imposed on textile
imports after complaints that cheap imports were hurting local
producers. United Arab Emirates markets ended mixed with volumes in Dubai at a three-week high.Real
estate-linked stocks led gains in Dubai, with Emaar Properties up 1.1
percent and Drake & Scull rising 0.6 percent. Logistics firm Aramex
climbed 1.7 percent and Air Arabia advanced 0.8 percent. These stocks are regular targets of retail investors looking to turn a profit on short-term volatility. Dubai's
index closed 0.4 percent higher to 1,467 points, cutting its 2011
losses to 10 percent, as trading volumes climbed to their highest level
since Aug. 22. "There is a lack of news and motivation for (UAE)
markets to take direction," said Samer Al-Jaouni, general manager of
Middle East Financial Brokerage. "But on the other hand, it's
positive that our markets didn't react in the same way to the global
tension as the international markets." "Local investors are waiting for news to re-think and invest in the markets." Abu Dhabi's index shed 0.2 percent to 2,579 points in muted trade. In
Qatar, the bourse gave back some of Tuesday's gains, but analysts
predicted it would rally before year-end, supported by strong earnings
from the gas exporter's blue chip stocks. The benchmark fell 0.2 percent to 8,319 points.Masraf
Al-Rayan and Qatar Gas Transport accounted for more than third of all
shares traded, slipping 0.3 and 0.1 percent respectively. "If we
put Qatar chemical companies aside because of oil prices' effect on
earnings, I think it will be a good year again for corporate earnings,"
Al-Jaouni said. "At the end of the year we could see the index close
over 9,000 points." The Omani index gained 0.1 percent to 5,700 points. The Bahraini measure advanced 0.3 percent to 1,270 points.
