Gulf stock markets rose yesterday after strong corporate earnings in Saudi Arabia and Oman, while Egypt climbed moderately as foreign investors accumulated shares.
Saudi companies tend to announce first-quarter earnings slightly earlier than firms elsewhere in the Gulf, and some positive surprises suggest the damage to the region caused by low oil prices may not be quite as bad as feared.
Petrochemical firm Yanbu (Yansab) jumped 1.2% after it reported a 41% rise in net profit to 402mn riyals ($107mn), far exceeding analyst forecasts.
Riyad Bank advanced 0.5% after it posted a 0.2% rise in first-quarter net profit to 1.2bn riyals ($321mn), beating analysts’ average forecast of 962mn riyals.
Seven of the 12 banks on the Saudi bourse have now reported earnings, with most beating forecasts.
The banking sub-index jumped 2.0% in its third straight session of gains. Riyadh’s overall stock index rose 1.0% to 6,509 points, a three-month high.
Two Omani telecommunications companies reported earnings which topped analysts’ expectations, helping to lift the Muscat index 0.5%.
Oman Telecommunications (Omantel) rose 0.3% after it reported a 0.6% rise in first-quarter net profit to 35mn rials ($91mn); analysts at EFG Hermes and Gulf Baader Capital Markets had forecast 29mn rials and 28mn rials.
Ooredoo Oman jumped 2.8% after it made a quarterly net profit of 13mn rials, an 18% rise; Gulf Baader had forecast 11mn rials.
In Dubai, where companies have yet to report first-quarter earnings, the index rose 1.3%, lifted by a 5.8% jump in Emaar Properties.
Investors appeared to welcome the company’s announcement that it plans to split with its Indian joint venture partner through a demerger process. Also, longer-term investors may be going back into Dubai blue chips with the recovery of oil prices and improved market mood.
Other Dubai large-cap stocks, which had been relatively subdued over the past several weeks, also gained. Dubai Financial Market, the only listed exchange in the region, rose 3.3%.
Abu Dhabi’s index advanced 1.8% as investors bought blue chips. Telecommunications giant Etisalat and Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank climbed 2.2% and 1.5% respectively.
In Cairo, the main stock index rose 0.6% as foreign traders bought back shares on dips. Investment firm EFG Hermes and Palm Hills Development jumped 4.2% and 2.6%.
Oriental Weavers climbed 1.4% after saying it would pay a dividend of 0.5 Egyptian pound per share on April 28, up from 0.4 pound a year earlier.
But Orascom Telecom Media, the most heavily traded stock, dropped 2.6% after the head of Egypt’s financial regulatory body said the acquisition of CI Capital by Orascom’s unit Beltone Financial would be delayed pending the resolution of a court case involving shareholders of CI Capital and its parent Commercial International Bank (CIB).
A top Beltone executive told Reuters that his company had extended its offer for CI Capital by 14 days to April 28 and was determined to complete the deal, but that if it fell through, Beltone would still seek to expand and look at another acquisition.
Beltone shares rose sharply early on but all those trades were later cancelled by the regulator because of the uncertainty; it was the third straight day that the stock was suspended. CIB fell 0.6%.
Elsewhere in the Gulf, Kuwait’s index dropped 0.1% to 5,301 points, while Bahrain’s index edged up 0.04% to 1,123 points.
Seven of the 12 banks on the Saudi bourse have now reported earnings, with most beating forecasts
