The Qatar Stock Exchange (QSE) fell 355.90 points or 3.2% to close at 10,699.28 for the week. Market capitalisation declined by 3.3% to QR636.4bn from QR658.4bn at the end of the previous trading week.
Of the 54 companies traded, six ended the week higher and 48 ended lower. Salam International (SIIS) was the best performing stock for the week, rising 6.4%. Meanwhile, Qatar Aluminum Manufacturing (QAMC) was the worst performing stock for the week, falling 15.7%.
QNB Group (QNBK), Industries Qatar (IQCD) and Nakilat (QGTS) were the main contributors to the weekly index decline. They removed 67.15, 54.69 and 51.12 points from the index, respectively.
Traded value during the week declined 8.7% to QR2,501.7mn vs. QR2,741.3mn in the prior trading week. QNBK was the top value stock traded during the week with total traded value of QR308.9mn.
Traded volume increased 1.9% to 885.3mn shares compared with 869.2mn shares in the prior trading week. The number of transactions rose 8.0% to 160,052 vs. 148,235 in the prior week. QAMC was the top volume stock traded during the week with total traded volume of 107.9mn shares.
Foreign institutions turned bearish, ending the week with net selling of QR430.6mn vs. net buying of QR149.6mn in the prior week. Qatari institutions accumulated with net buying of QR146.5mn vs. net selling of QR43.5mn in the week before. Foreign retail investors ended the week with net buying of QR0.7mn vs. net selling of QR16.1mn in the prior week. Qatari retail investors recorded net buying of QR283.3mn vs. net selling of QR89.9mn.
Global foreign institutions are net buyers of Qatari equities by $454.7mn YTD, while GCC institutions are long by $97.0mn.
The QSE index closed down by -3.2% to 10,699.28 from the week before. Moreover, the index breached both the 50-WMA currently near 10,860 and 200-WMA near 10,820 in a single swoop. Meanwhile, the index fell on the back of geopolitical tensions aligning with other global markets. However, the index managed to protect its 100-WMA near 10,540. On the higher side, the index needs to sustain above 10,900 for any meaningful pullback on the upside. Any sustained weakness below 50-MWA may drag the index lower towards 10,100. We advise not to trade in this geopolitical situation, as the markets could be highly volatile and uncertain.
