They also contended that regional bourses, particularly in the Gulf area, were expected to come under additional pressure from other political factors.
Wajdi Makhamreh, head of brokerage at the Amman-based Noor Investments, said: “The European sovereign debt ordeal and fears of the global economy sliding into a fresh downturn still represent the key challenge for regional as well as world markets.”
Saudi shares rebounded last week, apparently receiving momentum from third quarter profits released so far, as well as from some optimism that a solution could be found for the euro debt debacle.
The Tadawul All-Share Index (TASI) gained 1.72 percent on weekly basis, closing at 6,105.04 points.
Saudi analysts expressed disappointment over the failure of the market to respond to good third quarter earnings that were announced over the past couple of weeks.
“The fact that stock prices have not responded to the announced results involves a negative gesture,” said Mohammad Emran, member of the Saudi Economic Society.
“This means that Saudi investors are more concerned over the euro zone crisis and the world economy,” he added.
Another Saudi analyst, Mohammad Anqari, expected this week to be “crucial” for investors in the Saudi market, when the country’s top petrochemical conglomerate, the Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC), was expected to unveil its third quarter profits.
”I believe fund managers, with external affiliations, are unwilling at this juncture to pump fresh investments or to give up their positions, and prefer to wait to see what steps European policymakers are going to adopt to address the situation,” he said.
Kuwait’s KSE all-share index also gained 0.7 percent on weekly basis, to close at 5,867 points, propelled by the logistics firm Agility which jumped 6.8 percent.
The benchmarks of the United Arab Emirates stock exchanges of Dubai and Abu Dhabi closed 0.7 percent and 0.6 percent in the red, closing respectively at 1,385 points and 2,476 points, with the banking sector leading the decline.
The Dubai index suffered from news that the Emirates National Bank of Dubai (NBD) planned to take over the struggling Dubai Bank, which is run according to the Islamic law.
Qatar’s index gained 1.9 percent last week, led by the banking sector, closing at 8,397 points, while Bahrain’s benchmark lost 1.4 percent, closing at 1,150 points.
Jordanian shares extended losses for the fifth week in a row last week, due to lack of confidence and a persistent liquidity crunch, analysts said.
The all-share index of the Amman Stock Exchange (ASE), shed 1.3 percent last week, closing at 1,935 points.
Egypt’s AGX 30 index, which measures the performance of the market’s 30 most active stocks, gained 2.8 percent on weekly basis, closing at 4,062 points.
However, the Egyptian market lost 43 percent of its capitalization since the uprising erupted on Jan. 25, dealers said.
