By Santhosh V. Perumal
Business Reporter
Qatar Stock Exchange largely remained flat for the second day on Monday despite selling pressure in the industrials, transport and telecom stocks.
Local and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) retail investors were into net selling as the 20-stock Qatar Index settled a mere 0.05% lower at 12,279.17, even as trade volumes were on the rise.
However, mild buying interests were seen in the banking counters in the bourse, which is down 0.05% year-to-date.
Attractive valuations prompted domestic and foreign institutions to scout for stocks in the market, where trading was skewed towards banking, real estate and telecom stocks, which together accounted for about 76% of the overall volume.
Market capitalisation was down 0.04% or QR28mn to QR659.98bn despite mid and micro cap equities gaining 0.25% and 0.21% respectively.
The Total Return Index was down 0.05% to 19,082.48 points and All Share Index by 0.01% to 3,282.97 points, while Al Rayan Islamic Index rose 0.04% to 4,702.29 points.
Industrials stocks fell 0.7%, telecom (0.29%) and transport (0.27%); whereas banks and financial services gained 0.41%, realty (0.12%) and consumer goods and insurance (0.07% each).
Major losers included Industries Qatar, Masraf Al Rayan, Qatari German Company for Medical Devices, Ezdan, Ooredoo, Milaha and Nakilat.
However Qatar Islamic Bank, QNB, Commercial Bank, Alijarah Holding, Gulf International Services, Qatar Insurance, Barwa, Vodafone Qatar and Gulf Warehousing bucked the trend.
Local retail investors turned net sellers to the tune of QR54.49mn against net buyers of QR23.17mn on May 10.
The GCC individual investors were also net sellers to the extent of QR0.55mn compared with net buyers of QR3.52mn on Sunday.
Non-Qatari individual investors’ net buying weakened to QR6.26mn against QR8.86mn the previous day.
However, domestic institutions turned net buyers to the tune of QR5.81mn compared with net sellers of QR10.5mn on May 10.
Non-Qatari institutions were also net buyers to the extent of QR55.24mn against net sellers of QR11.47mn on Sunday.
The GCC institutions’ net profit booking weakened to QR12.22mn compared to QR13.59mn the previous day.
Total trade volume rose 48% to 10.67mn shares, value by 96% to QR500.83mn and transactions by 64% to 6,452.
The banks and financial services sector’s trade volume more than tripled to 5.04mn equities and value almost quadrupled to QR257.71mn on 95% expansion in deals to 2,079.
The insurance sector’s trade volume almost tripled to 0.13mn stocks and value grew more than seven-fold to QR10.43mn on almost tripled transactions to 142
The telecom sector’s trade volume more than doubled to 1.17mn shares and value more than tripled to QR36.7mn on more than five-fold jump in deals to 1,302.
The market witnessed 36% surge in the transport sector’s trade volume to 0.38mn equities, 28% in value to QR18.53mn and 61% in transactions to 250.
However, the consumer goods sector’s trade volume tanked 41% to 1.16mn stocks, value by 29% to QR32.92mn and deals by 25% to 641.
The real estate sector’s trade volume fell 3% to 1.87mn shares but value appreciated 19% to QR61.68mn and transactions by 66% to 1,019.
There was 2% dip in the industrials sector’s trade volume to 0.92mn equities, even as value soared 40% to QR82.87mn and deals by 5% to 1,019.
In the debt market, there was no trading of treasury bills and government bonds.
