Stronger buying – especially in the real estate and transport stocks – yesterday lifted the Qatar Stock Exchange 78 points and its key index inched near the 9,700 level.
Marginal buying support from local retail investors and lower selling pressure from domestic and foreign institutions helped the 20-stock Qatar Index gain 0.81% to 9,698.37 points.
However, Gulf and non-Qatari individual investors were seen bearish in the market, where trading turnover and volumes were on the rise.
Micro, mid and small cap equities witnessed heavy buying interests in the bourse, which is, however, down 7.01% year-to-date.
The index that tracks Shariah-principled stocks was seen gaining faster than the other indices in the market, where industrials, realty and banking stocks together accounted for about 79% of the total trading volume.
Market capitalisation expanded 0.74% or about QR4bn to QR517.02bn with micro, mid, small and large cap equities gaining 2.51%, 1.78%, 1.74% and 0.38% respectively.
The Total Return Index rose 0.81% to 15,125.57 points, All Share Index by 0.96% to 2,587.91 points and Al Rayan Islamic Index by 1.9% to 3,482.12 points.
Real estate stocks surged 2.28%, transport (2.25%), industrials (0.7%), consumer goods (0.69%), banks and financial services (0.63%) and telecom (0.45%); while insurance fell 0.24%.
About 70% of the stocks extended gains to investors with major movers being Barwa, Gulf Warehousing, Nakilat, Commercial Bank, Qatar Islamic Bank, Masraf Al Rayan, Islamic Holding Group, Qatari Investors Group, Mannai Corporation, Ooredoo, Al Khaleej Takaful and Qatar Islamic Insurance; even as Gulf International Services, Qatar Islamic Insurance, Alijarah Holding and Doha Insurance bucked the trend.
Local retail investors’ net buying increased to QR33.87mn compared to QR33.45mn the previous day.
Domestic institutions’ net profit booking shrank to QR6.4mn against QR25.3mn on Sunday.
Non-Qatari institutions’ net selling also declined to QR6.33mn compared to QR11.03mn on February 7.
However, the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) individuals turned net sellers to the tune of QR4.48mn against net buyers of QR1.66mn the previous day.
Non-Qatari individual investors were also net sellers to the extent of QR2.39mn compared with net buyers of QR8.98mn on Sunday.
The GCC institutions’ net profit booking strengthened to QR14.33mn against QR7.81mn on February 7.
Total trade volume rose 52% to 10.37mn shares, value by 56% to QR336.68mn and deals by 53% to 5,420.
The real estate sector’s trade volume more than doubled to 2.78mn equities and value more than quadrupled to QR77.97mn on almost doubled transactions to 1,003.
The telecom sector’s trade volume soared 60% to 0.56mn stocks, more than doubling value and deals to QR24.59mn and 680 respectively.
There was 53% increase in the insurance sector’s trade volume to 0.29mn shares, 25% in value to QR7.74mn and 60% in transactions to 101.
The banks and financial services sector reported 48% expansion in trade volume to 2.18mn equities, 58% in value to QR72.34mn and 73% in deals to 1,196.
The consumer goods sector’s trade volume shot up 43% to 1.14mn stocks, value by 4% to QR28.18mn and transactions by 14% to 686.
The industrials sector saw 27% rise in trade volume to 3.2mn shares, 23% in value to QR119.19mn and 25% in deals to 1,599.
However, the transport sector’s trade volume plunged 42% to 0.22mn equities and value by 37% to QR6.67mn; while transactions were up 1% to 155.
In the debt market, there was no trading of treasury bills and government bonds.