Qatar Stock Exchange on Sunday opened the week on a stronger note to surpass 8,700 levels with an ease mainly on increased buying interests of local retail investors.
Robust buying – especially in real estate, banking and transport counters – helped the 20-stock Qatar Index surge 1.4% to 8,751.2 points.
The Gulf funds’ marginally bullish outlook and the weakened net selling by foreign funds as well as Gulf individuals helped the market, whose capitalisation grew 0.91% to QR482.13bn.
Trade turnover and volumes were on the decline in the bourse, where banking, real estate and industrials sectors together accounted for more than 78% of the total volume.
The Total Return Index gained 1.4% to 14,675.25 points, Al Rayan Islamic Index by 1.7% to 3,561.95 points and All Share Index by 1.24% to 2,504.66 points.
The realty index soared 2.41%, banks and financial services (1.59%), transport (1.4%), consumer goods (1.34%0, telecom (0.9%) and industrials (0.38%), while insurance fell 1.13%.
More than 76% of the stocks extended gains with major movers being Commercial Bank, Doha Bank, Masraf Al Rayan, Qatar First Bank, Mannai Corporation, Mesaieed Petrochemical Holding, Barwa, Ezdan, Ooredoo, Gulf Warehousing, Nakilat, QNB, Qatar Oman Investment, Qatari German Company for Medical Devices and QNB, while Qatar Insurance, al khaliji and Ahli Bank were among the losers.
Local individuals’ net buying increased influentially to QR19.29mn compared to QR8.26mn the previous trading day.
The Gulf institutions turned net buyers to the tune of QR1.06mn against net sellers of QR5.56mn on January 4.
Non-Qatari institutions’ net selling weakened perceptibly to QR10.2mn compared to QR13.04mn last Thursday.
The Gulf individual investors’ net selling also fell to QR0.41mn against QR0.92mn the previous trading day.
However, domestic institutions turned net sellers to the tune of QR10.07mn compared with net buyers of QR10.86mn on January 4.
Non-Qatari retail investors’ net buying declined marginally to QR0.41mn against QR0.45mn last Thursday.
Total trade volume fell 9% to 7.96mn shares, value by 14% to QR203.52mn and deals by 10% to 3,567.
The insurance sector reported 43% plunge in trade volume to 0.08mn equities and 46% in value to QR3.71mn but on 51% increase in transactions to 107.
The real estate sector’s trade volume plummeted 32% to 2.05mn stocks, value by 2% to QR42.18mn and deals by 19% to 608.
The market witnessed 21% shrinkage in the telecom sector’s trade volume to 0.5mn shares, 61% in value to QR7.71mn and 55% in transactions to 171.
However, the consumer goods sector’s trade volume soared 57% to 0.36mn equities, value by 35% to QR15.8mn and deals by 11% to 344.
The banks and financial services sector’s trade volume gained 7% to 2.59mn stocks, whereas value shrank 13% to QR85.53mn despite 7% higher transactions to 1,276.
The industrials sector saw 5% expansion in trade volume to 1.58mn shares but on 33% decline in value to QR26.89mn and 21% in deals to 633.
The transport sector’s trade volume was up 3% to 0.79mn equities and value by 29% to QR21.72mn, while transactions fell 12% to 428.
In the debt market, there was no trading of treasury bills and sovereign bonds.
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