By Santhosh V Perumal

The Qatar Stock Exchange yesterday largely remained flat despite selling pressure in the telecom and real estate stocks.

Notwithstanding strong buying interests from local retail investors, the 20-stock Qatar Index (based on price data) added 0.53 points to close at 13,682. points amid rising volumes.

The buying trend was also sustained by non-Qatari retail investors in the market, which is up 31.82% year-to-date.

The index that tracks Shariah-principled stocks was seen gaining much faster than the other indices as trading volume was extremely skewed towards realty stocks.

Market capitalisation was down 0.13%, or about QR1bn, to QR726.71bn. Mid and large-cap equities were seen melting 0.23% and 0.11%, while small and micro gained 0.61% and 0.56% respectively.

Insurance stocks rose 0.81%, followed by consumer goods (0.19%) and banks and financial services and industrials (0.11% each), whereas telecom shrank 0.81%, realty 0.62% and transport fell 0.4%.

Major movers included Mazaya Qatar, Zad Holding, Doha Insurance, Gulf International Services and Mesaieed Petrochemical Holding Company.

However, QNB, Industries Qatar, Vodafone Qatar, United Development Company (UDC), Qatari Investors Group, Widam Food and Al Meera were seen to buck the trend.

Mazaya Qatar, UDC and Masraf Al Rayan were the most active in terms of both volume and value respectively.

Foreign institutions’ net buying sunk to QR7.9mn against QR82.48mn on Tuesday.

Domestic institutions turned net sellers to the tune of QR0.35mn compared with net buyers of QR10.85mn the previous day.

Non-Qatari individual investors’ net buying swelled to QR21.78mn against QR17.08mn on Tuesday.

Qatari retail investors’ net profit-booking weakened considerably to QR29.33mn compared to QR110.42mn the previous day.

Total trading volume rose 5% to 21.71mn stocks, while value fell 8% to QR867.7mn and transactions by 11% to 7,606.

The real estate sector’s trading volume more than doubled to 14.15mn equities and value also more than doubled to QR362.17mn on a 61% jump in deals to 2,844.

However, the insurance sector’s trading volume plummeted 81% to 0.14mn shares, value by 82% to QR6.59mn and transactions by 67% to 83.

The consumer goods sector saw its trading volume plunge 72% to 0.71mn stocks, value by 46% to QR50.85mn and deals by 31% to 635.

The telecom sector’s trading volume tanked 63% to 0.94mn equities, value by 67% to QR23.08mn and transactions by 55% to 312.

There was a 45% decline in the transport sector’s trading volume to 0.35mn shares, 60% in value to QR10.9mn and 49% in deals to 153.

The industrials sector’s trading volume shrank 38% to 1.44mn stocks, value by 31% to QR110.87mn and transactions by 27% to 1,506.

The banks and financial services sector reported a 24% slippage in trading volume to 3.98mn equities, 22% in value to QR303.24mn and 20% in transactions to 2,073.

In the debt market, there was no trading of treasury bills and government bonds.

 

 

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