Mideast Stocks: Most Gulf bourses end lower as oil prices drop; Egypt rises

The Commercial Bank (P.S.Q.C.)

20/03/2023 14:28

March 20 (Reuters) - Most Gulf stock markets ended lower
on Monday, as oil prices hit their lowest since 2021 on concerns
that the banking woes would add to recession risks.     
    Crude prices — a key catalyst for the Gulf's financial
markets — slid 1.1% on Monday with Brent crude  LCOc1  down to
$72.16 at 1230 GMT.
    Central banks' promises over the weekend to provide dollar
liquidity could not calm investors worried about instability in
the financial system.  
   The Qatari index  .QSI  slumped 1.3%, extending its losing
streak into a seventh session with almost all sectors ending in
red, led by financial and industrials.
    The region's largest lender Qatar National Bank  QNBK.QA 
fell 2.4% and index heavyweight banks Qatar Islamic Bank
 QISB.QA  and Commercial Bank  COMB.QA  shed 3.2% and 2.2%,
respectively.
    In Abu Dhabi, the index  .FTFADGI  declined 1.1%, dragged
down by a 3.2% slump in conglomerate International Holding
Company  IHC.AD  and a drop of 1.8% in Abu Dhabi National Energy
 TAQA.AD .
    Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank  ADIB.AD  and Abu Dhabi Commercial
Bank  ADCB.AD  lost 3.1% and 0.6%, respectively.
    Dubai's benchmark index  .DFMGI  fell 0.2%, weighed down by
losses in utilities, industrial and financial sectors. 
    Real estate developer Emaar Development  EMAARDEV.DU 
dropped 2.9% and cooling services provider Emirates Central
Cooling  EMPOWER.DU  lost 1.9%.
    "GCC stock markets came under pressure as concerns around
the western banking sector continue to increase and it could
strongly impact oil traders' expectations and push prices down,"
said Daniel Takieddine, CEO MENA at BDSwiss.
    The benchmark index  .TASI  in Saudi Arabia ended 0.8%
higher, extending gains to a second session. The index recorded
a surge in almost all sectors with Al Rajhi Bank  1120.SE  up
1.4% and Saudi National Bank  1180.SE  rising 3.9%.
    The Kingdom's largest lender by assets, SNB said on Monday
its growth strategy will be unaffected by the reduced valuation
on its investment in Credit Suisse following the Swiss bank's
takeover deal with UBS  UBSG.S  on Sunday.
    Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index  .EGX30  rose
1.7%, snapping six session losses with all sectors in the
positive territory.
    Commercial International Bank  COMI.CA  and E-Finance
 EFIH.CA  gained 1% and 6.1%, respectively.
    Separately, Egypt is targeting a GDP growth rate of 5% in
its new fiscal year budget, a spokesperson for the Egyptian
presidency said on Sunday.  
 SAUDI ARABIA     .TASI  rose 0.6% to 10,218
 KUWAIT           .BKP  lost 0.8% to 7,795
 QATAR            .QSI  dropped 1.3% at 9,778
 EGYPT            .EGX30  rose 1.7% to 14,924
 BAHRAIN          .BAX  lost 0.6% to 1,886
 OMAN             .MSX30  fell 0.2% to 4,860
 ABU DHABI        .FTFADGI  slid 1.1% to 9,545
 DUBAI            .DFMGI  lost 0.2% at 3,344
 
 (Reporting by Md Manzer Hussain; Editing by Shweta Agarwal)
 ((MdManzer.Hussain@thomsonreuters.com; 91 8067498453; Reuters
Messaging: MdManzer.Hussain@thomsonreuters.com))