Shares in Kuwaiti companies linked with the Al-Kharafi family tumbled yesterday after the multi-billion-dollar sale of another Kharafi-controlled business was scrapped, while other markets were mixed in thin trade.
Investment company Adeptio had agreed in February to buy 69% of Kuwait Food Co (Americana) from Al Khair for Stocks and Real Estate, which is run by the wealthy Kharafi merchant family.
But Al Khair announced on Sunday that the sale had been scrapped.
Americana’s shares were suspended, but other Kharafi-linked stocks plunged.
National Industries Group and National Investment Co slid 1.8% and 8.9% respectively, while Al Mal Investment Co was down 8.5% and Gulf Cable Co fell 3.7%.
The Kharafis own stakes in all four companies, Thomson Reuters data shows.
Kuwait’s index fell 0.1% to 5,393 points.
Elsewhere, Dubai’s index added 0.3%, with main support from blue chips.
Dubai Islamic Bank and telecommunication operator du rose 2.9% and 1.1% respectively.
Dubai Parks and Resorts was the most-traded stock on the bourse.
It closed 1.4% lower after rising as much as 4.2% in earlier trade.
The company completed a 1.68bn dirham ($457.44mn) rights issue last week.
Volumes, which were low on Sunday, have slumped since late April in the runup to the holy month of Ramadan which starts in early June.
But the weaker trend could yet be disturbed, said Marwan Shurrab, director at Vision Investments and Holding in Dubai.
Shurrab said speculation over a possible rise in US
interest rates and a June referendum on whether Britain should leave the European Union will contribute to volatility in Dubai stocks ahead of Ramadan.
Saudi Arabia’s benchmark fell 0.8%, with banking shares particularly weak.
Banque Saudi Fransi and National Commercial Bank slumped 4.0 and 2.2% respectively.
Stocks which had been advancing since the government announced an economic plan in April to diversify the economy away from its dependence on oil also fell, with miner Saudi Mining Co (Ma’aden) dropping 2.1%, its third session of declines.
In Egypt, the main index slid 0.6% in the lowest volumes in almost seven months, as regional investors exited positions, bourse data showed.
Global Telecom Holding dropped 3.3%.
But peer operator Telecom Egypt outperformed the market, and climbed 0.8% to 8.39 Egyptian pounds.
On Thursday Deutsche Bank raised its target price for the telecom operator to 16.90 Egyptian pounds and maintained a buy rating on the stock.
Elsewhere in the Gulf, the Kuwait index dropped 0.1% to 5,393 points, the Oman index fell 0.4% to 5,890 points and the Bahrain index lost 0.6% to 1,092 points.
A visitor exits the headquarters of Dubai Islamic Bank in Dubai (file). Shares in Dubai Islamic Bank and telecommunication operator du rose 2.9% and 1.1% respectively yesterday.
