Dubai, Abu Dhabi stocks pull back after strong week

Egypt's bourse hit a fresh six-year closing high on the back of Telecom Egypt on Thursday, while Qatar National Bank lifted the Doha bourse to a new all-time high.

Markets in the United Arab Emirates pulled back.

The Cairo index rose 0.2 per cent to 9,650 points as fixed-line monopoly Telecom Egypt surged 5.8 per cent after the government approved a long-awaited plan to issue a unified landline and mobile telecommunications licence.

The new licence could allow Telecom Egypt to start reclaiming its market share, which has been dented by mobile operators.

Another major support for the benchmark was property developer Talaat Moustafa Group (TMG), which rose 2.7 per cent. Egypt's administrative court suspended on Wednesday the annulment of the allocation of 3 million square metres of land to TMG's subsidiary in the Red Sea resort of Ain Sokhna, state-run newspaper Al Ahram reported.

Qatar's index rose 1.1 per cent to a new all-time closing high of 13,986 points. It also reached a new intra-day peak of 14,039 points, but failed to hold above the psychologically important 14,000-point level.

Qatar National Bank (QNB) jumped 2.6 per cent and was the main support. QNB and Industries Qatar, which added 1.1 per cent, will attract most fresh fund inflows if index compiler MSCI decides to lift Qatar's weighting in its emerging market index during a scheduled review in November.

"Much of the fresh money coming into the market is foreign," said Akber Khan, director of asset management at Al Rayan Investment in Doha.

Investors are attracted by Qatar's "extremely high dividend yield" and the fact its population has been growing rapidly, which is driving local service-focused companies. "That, combined with enormous infrastructure spend expected over the next decade, underpins earnings for a large proportion of listed companies," Khan said.

 UAE, SAUDI

Dubai's bourse fell one per cent after hitting resistance near its June high of 5,192 points.

Heavyweight developer Emaar Properties slid 1.3 per cent. The stock had surged 12.7 per cent earlier this week after the firm said it would float its malls in September, a move that will reward Emaar shareholders with priority allotment and a special dividend.

"Spinning off...will most likely raise the value of the Emaar Malls Group and if it is a success it could be the start of other Emaar operations also listing separately to maximise their valuations," Sachin Mohindra, senior vice president and portfolio manager at Invest AD Asset Management, said in a note.

Abu Dhabi's benchmark slid 0.8 per cent as that emirate's blue-chip banks were mixed. Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank rose 2.8 per cent, while First Gulf Bank fell 2.4 per cent.

Saudi Arabia's main index edged up 0.07 per cent. Advanced Petrochemical Co was the main support, surging 9.7 per cent.

The company on Thursday announced an interim dividend payment of 1.0 riyal per share for its third quarter and said it would invest in a project worth around $1 billion to produce propylene in South Korea.

 THURSDAY'S HIGHLIGHTS

EGYPT: The index edged up 0.2 per cent to 9,650 points.

QATAR: The index rose 1.1 per cent to 13,986 points.

DUBAI: The index fell 1.0 per cent to 5,121 points.

ABU DHABI: The index slid 0.8 per cent to 5,141 points.

SAUDI ARABIA: The index edged up 0.1 per cent to 11,069 points.

KUWAIT: The index slipped 0.1 per cent to 7,454 points.

OMAN: The index gained 0.5 per cent to 7,479 points.

BAHRAIN: The index rose 0.1 per cent to 1,472 points.

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