An across-the-board buying – especially within the insurance, banks, telecom and realty sectors – Tuesday lifted the Qatar Stock Exchange by another 81 points as its key index inched near the 10,600 level.
Continuing to benefit from the stock split, the 20-stock Qatar Index rose 0.77% to 10,584.23 points, ahead of today’s stock split implementation by QNB, Ahlibank Qatar and Islamic Holding.
Non-Qatar individuals and Gulf institutions were seen bullish in the market, whose key benchmark settled 2.77% higher year-to-date.
Market capitalisation expanded about 1%, or about QR6bn, to QR584.88bn mainly owing to mid and small cap segments.
Islamic equities were seen gaining slower than the other indices in the market, where domestic institutions continued to bet net profit takers, but with lesser intensity.
About 57% of the traded constituents extended gains to investors in the bourse, where the banking sector alone accounted for more than 66% of the total volume.
The banking sector has the June 9-16 window for the implementation of the stock split and so far Commercial Bank, Qatar First Bank, Al Khaliji, Dlala Holding, Qatar Oman Investment, QIIB and Alijarah Holding have enforced stock split, whereby the nominal value of a share has become QR1 per share instead of the earlier QR10 .
The Total Return Index gained 0.77% to 19,475.87 points, the All Share Index by 0.92% to 3,134.85 points and the Al Rayan Islamic Index (Price) by 0.26% to 2,411.26 points.
The insurance index soared 2.88%, banks and financial services (1.11%), telecom (1.07%), real estate (1.03%), consumer goods (0.49%), industrials (0.42%) and transport (0.1%).
Major gains included QNB, Doha Bank, QIIB, Qatari German Company for Medical Devices, Industries Qatar, Ezdan, Barwa, Ooredoo, Qatari Investors Group, Qatar Insurance and Milaha; even as Commercial Bank, Nakilat, Qatar National Cement, Salam International Investment and Medicare Group were among the losers.
Non-Qatari individual investors turned net buyers to the tune of QR1.94mn against net sellers of QR4.29mn on Monday.
Gulf institutions were net buyers to the extent of QR0.9mn compared with net profit takers of QR9.77mn on June 10.
Gulf individuals were also net buyers to the tune of QR0.47mn against net sellers of QR0.38mn the previous day.
Domestic institutions’ net selling weakened significantly to QR23.48mn compared to QR67.32mn on Monday.
However, local retail investors’ net profit booking grew marginally to QR70.25mn against QR69.94mn on June 10.
Non-Qatari institutions’ net buying declined substantially to QR90.43mn compared to QR151.69mn the previous day.
Total trade volume fell 2% to 30.67mn shares, value by 25% to QR358.41mn and transactions by 3% to 9,850.
The transport sector’s trade volume plummeted 46% to 0.21mn equities, value by 43% to QR5.19mn and deals by 36% to 162.
The consumer goods sector reported an 8% decline in trade volume to 0.77mn stocks, 69% in value to QR26.18mn and 21% in transactions to 514.
The banks and financial services sector’s trade volume was down 6% to 20.33mn shares, value by 16% to QR181.24mn and deals by 7% to 2,376.
However, the telecom sector witnessed an 85% surge in trade volume to 0.61mn equities but on a 20% shrinkage in value to QR9.8mn and 11% in transactions to 425.
The industrials sector’s trade volume expanded 14% to 3.34mn stocks, whereas value fell 26% to QR75.89mn and deals by 6% to 2,117.
There was a 10% jump in the real estate sector’s trade volume to 5.02mn shares, 15% in value to QR49.18mn and 5% in transactions to 3,983.
The insurance sector’s trade volume was up 3% to 0.38mn equities, while value declined 2% to QR10.93mn despite 18% higher deals at 273.
In the debt market, there was no trading of treasury bills and sovereign bonds.
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