Doha: Qatar Exchange index lost 12.79 points or 0.15 yesterday to 8,341.86 points from the previous closing of 8,354.65 points.
The volume of shares traded up to 2,900,828 from 1,764,893 on Sunday, and the value of shares increased to QR167,308,022.07 from QR80,016,706.59 on Sunday.
Among the top losers were Commercial Bank of Qatar whose share dropped 0.96 percent to QR72.00, Qatar Insurance which lost 2.94 percent to QR66.00, Barwa Real Estate which fell 1.26 percent to QR27.50 and Industries Qatar whose shares were down 0.13 percent to QR152.00.
The banking and financial sector added 3.13 points while the insurance sector lost 36.86 points. The industrial sector was down 2.68 points and the services sector gained 17.90 points.
Meanwhile, Egypt’s bourse fell yesterday as local investors booked the previous session’s gains after the main opposition coalition rejected Islamist President Mohammed Mursi’s plan for a constitutional referendum.
Opponents accused Mursi of plunging Egypt deeper into crisis when he refused to postpone the vote on a constitution shaped by Islamists.
Mursi scrapped on Saturday a decree giving himself wide powers, spurring a relief rally on the bourse, driven by foreign buyers. Egyptian investors however remain uncertain about the country’s political and economic outlook.
Cairo’s benchmark index fell 1.5 percent to 4,976 points, in volatile trade. The market is trapped within a range of 5,100 and 4,700 since Mursi’s decree on November 22 which gave him the sweeping powers.
“The market is trying to bottom near these levels. I am bullish on the medium-term, and I see that a break above 5,100 will be the first signal that the correction probably ended,” said Saleh Nasser, chief technical strategist at Cairo’s Pharos Holding.
Losers outnumbered gainers 22 to eight on the 30-stock index. Palm Hills Development and Orascom Telecom fell one and 1.1 percent respectively.
Egyptian investors were net sellers against foreign buyers, according to bourse data.
Meanwhile, most Gulf markets also slipped yesterday.
In Saudi Arabia, the bourse retreated from Sunday’s three-week high with investors reducing positions across sectors.
Bellwether Saudi Basic Industries Corp fell 0.6 percent, dairy giant Almarai Co shed 1.9 percent and Etihad Etisalat (Mobily) lost 0.7 percent.
The kingdom’s index closed 0.6 percent lower, trimming 2012 gains to 5.1 percent.
“There’s been a good uptrend so far in the past few sessions however, today there is some correction. There is mixed news from Western economies and Japan, which is officially in recession again,” said Abdullah Alawi, assistant general manager and head of research at Aljazira Capital.
“People are concerned about the impact on oil prices, which is the main driver.”
Elsewhere, UAE markets closed mixed amid thin volumes in the absence of a catalyst.
Abu Dhabi’s benchmark slipped 0.2 percent, easing away from Sunday’s three-week high.
Large-caps weighed on the index with National Bank of Abu Dhabi slipping one percent and Abu Dhabi National Energy declining 0.8 percent.
In company news, Dana Gas, the first UAE group to default on an Islamic bond, is offering bondholders $70m in cash and an average 8 percent coupon on the remaining $850 million of debt in a move to buy time to fix its finances.
Agencies
