Arab stocks lacklustre on annual earnings, Iran-West tensions

Jan 20, 2012, 14:16 GMT

Amman - Arab stock markets ended the week with mixed results as investors appraised end-of-year earnings and eyed the fallout from rising tensions between Iran and the West over Tehran's nuclear programme, analysts said on Friday.

Market watchers also expect Middle East bourses to benefit from a writedown deal on Greek debt and European Union efforts to contain the eurozone sovereign debt crisis.

'I believe investors are monitoring annual earnings and dividend distributions to decide their portfolios for the coming period,' Nizar Taher, chief of brokerage at the Jordan Ahli Bank, told dpa.

'Regional markets are also interested in seeing European policy makers adopt effective measures to bring the sovereign debt ordeal under control,' he said.

Taher said a threat by Iran to block the strategic Strait of Hormuz, where 35 per cent of the world's seaborne oil flows, would have a negative impact on regional markets, particularly in the oil-producing Gulf states.

Saudi shares suffered this week after the Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC), the top Middle East petrochemical conglomerate, released lower-than-expected profits for 2011, analysts said.

The Tadawul All Share Index (TASI) of the Arab world's largest stock exchange lost 1.7 per cent on a weekly basis, closing at 6,377.99 points.

'The market is showing unjustified concerns toward annual earnings of leading firms,' Saudi analyst Rashid Fawzan said. 'I believe the expectations were very high. Nevertheless, SABIC has posted record profits this year.'

Kuwaiti stocks scored gains this week ahead of the publication of yearly results by the banking sector, analysts said.

Kuwait's KSE all-share index rose 0.9 per cent on weekly basis, closing at 5,798 points.

United Arab Emirates shares lost ground this week due to disappointing fourth quarter results.

The all-share index of the Abu Dhabi stock exchange fell 1 per cent, closing at 2,337 points, while Dubai's benchmark closed week unchanged at 1,328 points.

Qatar's index plunged 2.7 per cent this week, closing at 8,462 points, while Bahrain's benchmark gained 0.8 per cent, closing at 1,142 points.

Jordanian shares lost fresh ground this week as traders protested lack of action from the new chief of the Jordan Securities Commission (JSC), Mohammad Tash, to reactivate the beleaguered stock market, analysts said.

The all-share index of the Amman Stock Exchange (ASE) shed 0.8 per cent this week, to close at 1,939 points.

Egyptian stocks rebounded this week, buoyed by foreign buying, due to the improving political climate in the country after the election of a parliament, analysts said.

Egypt's AGX 30 index, which measures the performance of the market's 30 most active stocks, climbed 2.4 per cent on a weekly basis, to close at 3,868 points.