By Santhosh V Perumal/Business Reporter


The Qatar Exchange yesterday entered the third day of a bearish run mainly on institutional investors’ profit-booking pressures, leading to its main index settle below the 11,200 mark.
Local retail investors’ buying support notwithstanding, the 20-stock Qatar Index (based on price data) fell another 0.67% to 11,170.25 points.
Telecom and banking stocks largely came under selling pressure in the market, which is however up 7.62% year-to-date.
Unlike other major barometers, the index that tracks Shariah-principled stocks was on a positive trajectory albeit at lower levels.
The 20-stock Total Return Index fell 0.67% to 15,959.73 points and the All Share Index (with wider constituents) by 0.59% to 2,761.1 while the Al Rayan Islamic Index was up 0.07% to 3,220.96.
All the three indices factored in dividend income as well.
Telecom stocks plunged 3.5%, followed by banks and financial services (0.84%), transport (0.31%) and real estate (0.12%), whereas insurance gained 0.94%, consumer goods 0.33% and industrials 0.06%.
About 49% of the stocks were in the red with influential shakers being Ooredoo, QNB, Commercial Bank, United Development Company and Nakilat. However, Industries Qatar, Barwa and Vodafone Qatar bucked the trend.
Market capitalisation eroded 0.72%, or more than QR4bn, to QR590.49bn. Large-cap equities melted more than 1% and small caps 0.25%; while micro and mid caps rose 0.54% and 0.05% respectively.
Foreign institutions were net sellers to the tune of QR14.16mn compared with net buyers of QR55.9mn the previous day.
Domestic institutions were also net sellers to the extent of QR4.78mn against net buyers of QR5.94mn on Monday.
However, Qatari retail investors were net buyers to the tune of QR9.07mn compared with net sellers of QR68.71mn the previous day.
Non-Qatari individual investors’ net buying was QR9.88mn against QR6.88mn on Monday.
Total trading volume was down 11% to 7.75mn stocks, value by 14% to QR451.08mn and transactions by 22% to 4,347.
The insurance sector’s trading volume plummeted 77% to 0.17mn equities, value by 83% to QR8.69mn and deals by 73% to 79.
The industrials sector saw its trading volume plunge 49% to 1.15mn shares, value by 33% to QR150.6mn and transactions by 42% to 1,377. The real estate sector’s trading volume tanked 20% to 0.99mn stocks, value by 22% to QR23.2mn and deals by 7% to 522.
There was a 19% decline in transport sector’s trading volume to 0.66mn equities, 34% in value to QR230.37mn and 37% in transactions to 259.
However, the telecom sector’s trading volume more than doubled to 1.67mn shares and value rose more than five-fold to QR78mn on more-than-tripled deals to 651.
The banks and financial services sector reported an 8% gain in trading volume to 2.61mn stocks and 3% in value to QR152.76mn whereas transactions fell 16% to 1,196.
Although the consumer goods sector’s trading volume was flat at 0.51mn equities, its value shrank 30% to QR17.46mn and deals by 13% to 263.
In the debt market, there was no trading of treasury bills and government bonds.

Egypt stocks rise after general cleared for presidency vote

Egypt’s stock market climbed to a 44-month high yesterday after the army chief was given the green light to run for president, while markets in the UAE snapped a two-session decline.
The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces cleared Field Marshal Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to run in upcoming elections. Cairo’s benchmark index rose 1.5% to 7,368 points, its highest level since May 2010.
In the UAE, Dubai’s bourse jumped 3.2% to 3,805 points, halting a two-day drop. Abu Dhabi’s measure also ended its decline, up 1.3%.
Elsewhere in the Gulf, Saudi Arabia’s index ticked up 0.01% to 8,656 points; Oman’s measure slipped 0.1% to 7,148 points; Kuwait’s gauge retreated 0.4% to 7,749 points, while Bahrain’s benchmark gained 0.5% to 1,278 points.