The Qatar Stock Exchange entered the fourth day of bearish run with its key index losing 55 points to settle below the 10,400 mark.
Domestic institutions’ bearish outlook and substantially weakened buying interests of non-Qatari individual investors rather led the 20-stock Qatar Index close 0.53% lower at 10,361.49 points.
Telecom, transport, realty and consumer goods witnessed higher-than-average selling in the market, whose year-to-date losses widened to 0.72%.
Lower buying support from local and Gulf retail investors also had its share in dampening the bourse, where foreign institutions however turned bullish and there was lower net selling by their Gulf counterparts.
Islamic stocks were seen falling slower than the main index as well as other indices in the market, where profit booking was seen intense within mid and small cap equities.
Trade turnover and volumes were on the fall in the market, where banking, real estate and telecom sectors together accounted for more than 79% of the total volumes.
Market capitalisation eroded more than QR3bn or 0.62% to QR557.63bn as mid, small, micro and large cap scrips fell 1.01%, 0.74%, 0.57% and 0.32% respectively.
The Total Return Index lost 0.53% to 17,070.05 points, All Share Index by 0.54% to 2,902.5 points and Al Rayan Islamic Index by 0.27% to 4,060.43 points.
The telecom sector saw its index plummet 3.86%, transport (2.11%), realty (1.24%), consumer goods (1.1%) and banks and financial services (0.34%); whereas insurance and industrials gained 0.92% and 0.6% respectively.
About 62% of the stocks were in the red with major losers being Doha Bank, Ooredoo, Gulf Warehousing, Milaha, Gulf International Services, Mesaieed Petrochemical Holding, Vodafone Qatar, Nakilat, Qatar First Bank, Medicare Group, Qatari German Company for Medical Devices, QNB, Barwa, Mazaya Qatar and Ezdan.
Nevertheless, among the gainers were Commercial Bank, Qatar Insurance, Qatar Electricity and Water, Qatar Islamic Bank, QIIB, Alijarah Holding, Dlala, Qatar National Cement, Qatari Investors Group and Islamic Holding Group.
Domestic institutions turned net sellers to the tune of QR36.22mn compared with net buyers of QR1.42mn on March 7.
Non-Qatari individual investors’ net buying weakened considerably to QR2.44mn against QR40.46mn on Tuesday.
Local retail investors’ net buying also declined perceptibly to QR0.73mn compared to QR3.25mn the previous day.
The GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) retail investors’ net buying fell to QR1.45mn against QR3.88mn on March 7.
However, non-Qatari institutions turned net buyers to the extent of QR65.86mn compared with net sellers of QR8.03mn on Tuesday.
The GCC institutions’ net profit booking declined to QR34.25mn against QR40.93mn the previous day.
Total trade volume fell 3% to 14.03mn shares, value by 1% to QR518.98mn and deals by 9% to 5,477.
There was 84% plunge in the insurance sector’s trade volume to 0.23mn equities, 87% in value to QR9.91mn and 45% in transactions to 83.
The transport sector’s trade volume plummeted 44% to 0.59 stocks, value by 34% to QR20.39mn and deals by 35% to 339.
The industrials sector reported 41% shrinkage in trade volume to 1.35mn shares, 35% in value to QR67.95mn and 33% in transactions to 927.
The consumer goods sector’s trade volume tanked 39% to 0.71mm equities, value by 43% to QR56.03mn and deals by 36% to 801.
However, the real estate sector witnessed 65% surge in trade volume to 2.61mn stocks and 48% in value to QR53.06mn but on 9% decline in transactions to 588.
The telecom sector’s trade volume soared 31% to 2.01mn shares to more than double value to QR43.31mn but on 25% slump in deals to 190.
The banks and financial services sector saw 23% expansion in trade volume to 6.53mn equities, 64% in value to QR268.32mn and 41% in transactions to 2,549.
In the debt market, there was no trading of treasury bills and government bonds.
QSE
