Saudi, UAE stock markets weaken while Qatar rebounds

The hope for a general rebound at Gulf Arab stock markets lasted only temporarily. After the Saudi market jumped over 5 percent Saturday, when all other exchanges in the region were closed, Sunday was not more than a "back-to- reality" day.

Saudi Arabia's Tasi Index ended 1.44 percent lower at 6,087.28 points as most shares of industrial investment companies posted losses, and despite oil prices stabilizing above 74 U.S. dollars per barrel.

In the United Arab Emirates (UAE), both local markets in Dubai and Abu Dhabi failed to gain momentum. The Dubai Financial Market (DFM) started bullishly, but ran out of steam during trading and finished down 0.25 percent at 1,601.24 points. Since the beginning of this year, the DFM plummeted 11.22 percent.

Dubai's largest listed firm Emaar Properties, developer of iconic real estate objects such as the world's tallest tower Burj Khalifa, closed unchanged at 3.41 dirhams (about 0.92 dollar).

The performance of Dubai Ports (DP) World, however, gave investors a glimmer of hope. The fourth largest port in the world, listed at Dubai's international exchange Nasdaq Dubai, gained more than 5 percent, closing at 0.47 dollar. DP World advanced more than 14 percent since May 25.

The Abu Dhabi General Index closed slightly lower at 2,636.68 points.

In Doha, the Qatar Exchange rebounded strongly, closing 2.14 percent higher at 6,825.89 points. Shares of the National Leasing Holding Company jumped 2.86 percent higher, ending at 24.50 Qatari riyal (about 6.72 dollars).

At the Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE), investors preferred to stay on the sidelines as the outcome of the euro crisis might still not be clear. The KSE Market Index closed unchanged at 6,813.8 points.

Wethaq Takaful Insurance Company, an insurance firm operating 100 percent in line with Islamic law Shari'ah, posted the largest gain in Kuwait, advancing by 8.92 percent and ending at 0.61 Kuwaiti dinar (about 2.09 dollars). National Bank of Kuwait traded the most, with its stock rising 1.7 percent to 1.20 Kuwaiti dinar (about 4.13 dollars) and turning over shares worth 1.4 million Kuwaiti dinar (about 4.79 million dollars).

Source:Xinhua