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Market EyeTracking weaker oil prices, the Qatar Stock Exchange Wednesday fell more than 41 points and its key barometer retreated below 11,200 levels as foreign funds hurriedly squared off their position.The telecom, industrials and real estate counters witnessed higher than average selling pressure as the 20-stock Qatar Index shed 0.37% to 11,142.37 points, although it touched an intraday high of 11,212 points.The foreign individuals were seen increasingly net sellers in the main market, whose year-to-date gains truncated to 5.4%.About 61% of the traded constituents were in the red in the main bourse, whose capitalisation eroded QR3.49bn or 0.52% to QR664.85bn, mainly on small and microcap segments.However, the Gulf institutions were seen net buyers in the main market, which saw as many as 3,122 exchange traded funds (sponsored by AlRayan Bank and Doha Bank) valued at QR7,490 trade across seven deals.The local retail investors were increasingly bullish in the main bourse, whose trade turnover and volumes were on the rise.The Islamic index was seen declining slower than the other indices of the main market, which saw no trading of treasury bills.The Arab individuals were increasingly net buyers in the main bourse, which saw no trading of sovereign bonds.The Total Return Index shed 0.37%, the All Share Index by 0.4% and the All Islamic Index by 0.27% in the main market.The telecom sector declined 0.71%, industrials (0.64%), realty (0.48%), banks and financial services (0.37%), insurance (0.36%) and transport (0.26%); while consumer goods and services was up 0.05%.Major shakers in the main market included Estithmar Holding, Commercial Bank, Al Mahhar Holding, Meeza, Mazaya Qatar, QNB, Baladna, Industries Qatar, Ezdan, Ooredoo, Vodafone Qatar and Milaha.In the junior bourse, Techno Q saw its shares depreciate in value.Nevertheless, Mannai Corporation, Qatar Islamic Bank, QIIB, Inma Holding and Widam Food were among the gainers in the main market.The foreign institutions turned net sellers to the tune of QR43.06mn compared with net buyers of QR10.76mn the previous day.The foreign retail investors’ net profit booking increased marginally to QR0.66mn against QR0.41mn on September 2.However, the Gulf institutions were net buyers to the extent of QR11.81mn compared with net sellers of QR6.07mn on Tuesday.The local retail investors’ net buying strengthened significantly to QR11.65mn against QR2.15mn the previous day.The Arab individual investors’ net buying expanded substantially to QR10.86mn compared to QR3.91mn on September 2.The domestic funds turned net buyers to the tune of QR8.63mn against net profit takers of QR10.75mn on Tuesday.The Gulf individual investors’ net buying increased marginally to QR0.77mn compared to QR0.4mn the previous day.The Arab institutions had no major net exposure for the third straight session.The main market saw a 57% jump in trade volumes to 134.27mn shares and 54% in value to QR401.92mn on more than doubled deals to 30,365.In the venture market, a total of 0.69mn equities valued at QR1.87mn changed hands across 107 transactions.

Market Eye Oil price slippage had its reflection on the Qatar Stock Exchange, which Monday lost as much as 47 points as the Arab individual investors turned net profit takers. The insurance, industrials, transport and banking counters witnessed higher than average selling pressure as the 20-stock Qatar Index shed 0.42% to 11,175.48 points, although it touched an intraday high of 11,230 points. The Gulf institutions were seen bearish in the main market, whose year-to-date gains truncated further to 5.72%. The domestic funds’ weakened net buying had its influence on the main bourse, whose capitalisation melted QR2.51bn or 0.37 to QR667.34bn, mainly on small and microcap segments. The local retail investors continued to be net sellers but with lesser intensity in the main market, which saw as many as 2,438 exchange traded funds (sponsored by Doha Bank) valued at QR0.03mn trade across six deals. The foreign individuals turned net buyers in the main bourse, whose trade turnover and volumes were on the decline. The Islamic index was seen declining slower than the other indices of the main market, which saw no trading of treasury bills. The foreign institutions turned bullish in the main bourse, which saw no trading of sovereign bonds. The Total Return Index shed 0.42%, the All Share Index by 0.39% and the All Islamic Index by 0.32% in the main market. The insurance sector index declined 0.8%, industrials (0.58%), transport (0.51%), banks and financial services (0.44%) and telecom (0.33%): while consumer goods and services gained 0.68% and real estate 0.12%. About 53% of the traded constituents were in the red with major losers in the main market being Estithmar Holding, Milaha, Qatar Insurance, QIIB, Commercial Bank, Industries Qatar, Ooredoo and Qatar Electricity and Water. Nevertheless, Qatar German Medical Devices, Meeza, Woqod, AlRayan Bank, Baladna and Al Faleh Educational Holding were among the movers in the main bourse. In the venture market, Techno Q saw its shares appreciate in value. The Arab individual investors turned net sellers to the tune of QR1.76mn compared with net buyers of QR2.24mn on Sunday. The Gulf institutions were net sellers to the extent of QR1.26mn against net buyers of QR9.82mn the previous day. The domestic institutions’ net buying decreased noticeably to QR1.21mn compared to QR6.37mn on August 31. However, the foreign retail investors turned net buyers to the tune of QR5.64mn against net sellers of QR0.8mn on Sunday. The foreign institutions were net buyers to the extent of QR2.07mn compared with net sellers of QR12.01mn the previous day. The Gulf individual investors’ net buying expanded perceptibly to QR1.45mn against QR0.52mn on August 31. The local retail investors’ net profit booking weakened markedly to QR3.2mn compared to QR6.45mn on Sunday. The Arab institutions had no major net exposure against net buyers to the extent of QR0.32mn the previous day. The main market saw 2% slump in trade volumes to 105.81mn shares, less than 1% in value to QR278.54n and 17% in deals to 14,385. In the venture market, a total of 0.07mn equities valued at QR0.2mn changed hands across 16 transactions.

Oil prices fell on Friday as traders looked toward weaker demand in the US, the world's largest oil market, and a boost in supply this autumn from OPEC and its allies. Brent crude futures for October delivery, which expired on Friday, settled at $68.12 a barrel, down 50 cents.West Texas Intermediate crude futures settled at $64.01, down 59 cents. The market was in part shifting its focus toward next week's OPEC+ meeting.Crude output has increased from OPEC+, as the group has accelerated output hikes to regain market share, raising the supply outlook and weighing on global oil prices. Meanwhile, the US summer driving season ends on Monday's Labor Day holiday, signalling the end of the highest demand period in the country, which is the largest fuel market.Crude supply increases have yet to reach the US market, raising the prospect of a tighter balance between supply and demand. Earlier in the week, prices rose on news of Ukrainian attacks against Russian oil export terminals, but reports of ceasefire discussions between Ukraine’s European allies helped ease the upward pressure.US crude inventories for the week ending August 22 posted larger-than-expected draws, suggesting late-summer demand remained firm, especially across industrial and freight-related sectors. Meanwhile, analysts noted that investors are closely watching India’s response to US pressure to curb purchases of Russian oil.GasAsian spot LNG prices slipped last week on muted demand and ample supply, with the delivery of an LNG cargo from a sanctioned Russian project adding to supply concerns. The average LNG price for October delivery into Northeast Asia was at $11.15 per mmBtu, down from $11.40 per mmBtu last week, industry sources estimated. LNG market sentiment remained calm with arbitrage for US cargoes still Europe-bound.Major Northeast Asian buyers have limited interest in prompt cargoes due to high stocks and a relatively loosened Pacific balance. The risk of Russia's Arctic LNG 2 ramping up LNG exports has significantly increased with the first unloading of a cargo from the facility in China.A full, sustained ramp-up of the first two trains at Arctic LNG 2 is a significant downside risk to Asian spot LNG prices. The Arctic LNG 2 cargo delivery has weighed on Chinese demand expectations for spot LNG, freeing up spot supply elsewhere. Additional supply from new projects is putting downward pressure on prices.Besides ramp-ups from Plaquemines in the US, new projects like LNG Canada, Greater Tortue Ahmeyim offshore West Africa and Congo LNG could add around 0.5mn tons per month in July and August, while the return of Norway's Hammerfest LNG after being offline since May represents a recovery of around 400,000 tons per month. In Europe, the Dutch TTF hub settled at $10.74 per mmBtu, recording a weekly loss of more than 6%.

Ukrainian drone strikes on Russia’s oil export pipelines and a doubling of US tariffs on goods imported from India appear to be hitting Moscow’s crude flows.Weekly crude shipments from Russian ports fell by 320,000 barrels a day in the week to August 24, tanker-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg show.Flows dropped to a four-week low of 2.72mn barrels a day, pushed down by reduced loadings at the Baltic port of Ust-Luga. The drop left four-week average crude shipments little changed, with seaborne cargoes averaging 3.06mn barrels a day.Ukraine has intensified attacks targeting Russia’s oil infrastructure, hitting a major pumping station on the nation’s export pipeline network and several refineries.The Unecha pump station, on the Druzhba pipeline system close to Russia’s border with Belarus, was targeted by Ukrainian drones twice in the past two weeks.The attacks have halted piped crude deliveries to Hungary and Slovakia and appear to have hampered shipments from the port of Ust-Luga on Russia’s Baltic coast. The Baltic Pipeline System 2, which carries Russian and Kazakh crude to the port, begins at Unecha.Storage tanks at the port mean that any halt in deliveries may not result in an immediate drop in shipments, but only two tankers loaded Russian crude at Ust-Luga last week, down from four during the previous seven days and six in the week to August 10, the tracking data and shipping reports show.Recent strikes on the Volgograd and Novoshakhtinsk refineries helped to push Russia’s crude processing down by about 700,000 barrels a day in the third week of August from the average during the last week of July. That ought to free up more crude for export, if processing is halted for long periods.Separately, President Donald Trump’s doubling of US import tariffs on goods from India to 50%, imposed because of New Delhi’s purchases of Russian oil, appears to hitting the flow of Moscow’s crude to the south Asian nation, though it’s unclear how long the trend will persist.Shipments heading to India have fallen by more than 500,000 barrels a day over the past two months and even if all the tankers with no confirmed destination end up discharging at Indian ports, flows would still be down by 300,000 barrels a day, or 17%, since late June.The tariff increase could yet be reversed or paused, but refiners are planning to trim purchases of Russian crude in the coming weeks, a modest concession to Washington’s pressure, but also a signal that New Delhi doesn’t plan to cut ties with Moscow. Nevertheless, Russia sees the discounts it offers Indian refiners as big enough to keep them buying its oil.The US president has repeatedly said he would increase sanctions against Moscow if it failed to agree a ceasefire in Ukraine, most recently on Friday, but the threats have so far come to nothing.Trump’s recent meeting with President Vladimir Putin in Alaska saw the Russian leader conceding little, but getting another stay of execution on threatened US secondary tariffs on China. Chinese refiners have stepped up purchases of discounted cargoes relinquished by India.A total of 25 tankers loaded 19.07mn barrels of Russian crude in the week to August 24, vessel-tracking data and port-agent reports show. The volume was down from 21.3mn barrels on 28 ships the previous week.Crude flows in the period to August 24 stood at about 3.06mn barrels a day on a four-week average basis, up by 20,000 barrels a day from the period to August 17.The four-week average smooths out big swings in weekly numbers, giving a clearer picture of underlying trends in crude flows. Using more volatile weekly figures, shipments fell by about 320,000 barrels to a four-week low of 2.72mn barrels a day. The drop in weekly flows was driven by fewer cargoes being loaded at Ust-Luga.The gross value of Moscow’s exports fell by about $110mn, or 9%, to $1.11bn in the week to August 24 from $1.22bn the previous week. The drop in flows was compounded by slightly lower average prices for Russia’s crudes.