Gulf Arab bourses recovered losses as investors searched for bargains in UAE and Qatar banking and real estate stocks that had been hit by a foreign sell-off this month.
Gulf Arab bourses entered bear market territory this week as the dollar's gains on global markets and a rebound in Western stocks lured investors out of the region.
Many stocks reverse declines on Wednesday. Commercial Bank of Qatar rises 2.12 per cent after falling almost 6 per cent this month.
Abu Dhabi's First Gulf Bank gains 7.2 per cent, having dropped more than 26 per cent since Aug. 1, while Emaar Properties advances 2.5 per cent after falling to a 40-month trough on Tuesday.
"The market is very cheap," says Alfred Fayek, director on the EFG-Hermes Gulf institutional desk. "Next month, if the market is flat or lags sideways for five or 10 days, we expect everyone could jump in the market."
Qatar's measure gains 0.51 per cent to 11,087.01 points. Abu Dhabi's index rises 1.61 per cent to 4,463.21 poitns and Dubai's advances 2.63 per cent to 5,074.09 points. Bahrain's bourse also gains 0.66 per cent to 2,711.15 points.