By Santhosh V. Perumal
Business Reporter
Local retail investors’ bearish outlook, coupled with their Gulf and non-Qatari counterparts’ increased net selling, led the Qatar Stock Exchange on Wednesday to slip for the second day by 86 points and settle below the 11,700 mark.
Mainly dragged by the industrials, insurance and realty sectors, the 20-stock Qatar Index shed 0.73% to 11,669.62 points on lower overall trade volumes.
Increased net selling by Gulf institutions and slightly lower buying interests from non-Qatari institutions were also instrumental in overall bearish sentiments in the market, which is down 5.02% year-to-date.
The index that tracks Shariah-principled stocks was seen falling slower than the other indices in the bourse, where trading was largely skewed towards the real estate and banking sectors, which together constituted about 59% of the volume.
Market capitalisation eroded 0.61%, or about QR4bn, to QR612.82bn.
The Total Return Index fell 0.73% to 18,138.75 points, the All Share Index by 0.62% to 3,106.33 points and the Al Rayan Islamic Index by 0.6% to 4,442.95 points.
Industrials stocks tanked 1.2%, followed by insurance (1%), realty (0.82%), banks and financial services (0.42%) and telecom (0.01%); whereas consumer goods and transport rose 0.14% and 0.04% respectively.
About 66% of the stocks were in the red with major losers being Industries Qatar, Aamal Company, Gulf International Services, Mesaieed Petrochemical Holding, Qatar Electricity and Water, Barwa, Mazaya Qatar, Vodafone Qatar, Nakilat, QNB, Qatar Islamic Bank, Islamic Holding Group and Salam International Investment; even as Qatar National Cement and Ooredoo bucked the trend.
Local retail investors turned net sellers to the tune of QR4.53mn compared with net buyers of QR8.18mn on October 20.
Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) individual investors’ net profit booking increased to QR18.24mn against QR4.45mn on Tuesday.
The GCC institutions’ net selling also strengthened to QR11.76mn compared to QR7.62mn the previous day.
Non-Qatari institutions’ net buying marginally weakened to QR26.39mn against QR27.79mn on October 20.
However, non-Qatari individual investors turned net buyers to the extent of QR12.37mn compared with net sellers of QR5.84mn on Tuesday.
Domestic institutions’ net profit-booking notably declined to QR4.24mn against QR18.1mn the previous day.
Total trade volume shrank 47% to 7.23mn shares, value by 38% to QR246.45mn (excluding rights to subscribe in the rights issue) and deals by 6% to 3,795.
The transport sector saw an 80% plunge in trade volume to 0.66mn equities, 79% in value to QR17.8mn and 61% in transactions to 296.
The telecom sector’s trade volume plummeted 79% to 0.81mn stocks, value by 77% to QR13.6mn and deals by 42% to 342.
There was a 32% shrinkage in the industrials sector’s trade volume to 0.99mn shares and 42% in value to QR55.97mn but on 31% jump in transactions to 1,215.
The real estate sector’s trade volume tanked 22% to 2.73mn equities, value by 42% to QR49.64mn and deals by 17% to 644.
The market witnessed an 18% decline in the consumer goods sector’s trade volume to 0.46mn stocks, 44% in value to QR15.06mn and 16% in transactions to 273.
However, the banks and financial services sector’s trade volume soared 78% to 1.53mn shares and value more than doubled to QR91.07mn on 59% expansion in deals to 943.
There was a 25% increase in the insurance sector’s trade volume to 0.05mn equities but on a 3% dip in value to QR3.3mn. Transactions surged 55% to 82.
In the debt market, there was no trading of treasury bills and government bonds.
