Beirut SE (one month)
Current Year High: 1,396.65 Current Year Low: 705.56
The Beirut Stock Exchange (BSE) index witnessed its sharpest downturn since the global equity sell-off in the fall of 2008, dropping 8.31% to 1,002.09 points as of August 24, down from the 2009 peak of 1,109.24 points seen on July 29. The political vacuum created by the stalled cabinet formation took a toll on the exchange’s largest stock and real estate developer, Solidere, whose shares fell almost 11% during the review period. Despite the political stand-off, the country still welcomed a record of number of tourists during the first seven months of 2009 and banks’ assets and loans continued to grow. Growth forecasts for the Lebanese economy ranged between 2.4% and 6%. Still, driven by limited volume, shares of Bank Audi and Byblos Bank fell 2.29% and 10.26%, respectively. BLC Bank led the market with an 11.05% gain. Holcim Liban and BLOM also managed to add market value.
Amman SE (one month)
Current Year High: 4,405.12 Current Year Low: 2,454.48
Market performance in the past two months has indeed been a stark reflection of the general sense of pessimism in Jordan. After posting a sharp decline in July, the Amman Stock Exchange (ASE) index continued its downward trend into August, losing 5.78% to reach 2,467.33 points on August 25. The Jordanian decline was driven by the Insurance and Service sectors which plunged 9.01% and 6.8% respectively during the review period, while the Industrial and Banking sectors were not innocent, shedding 4.09% and 2.77%, respectively. Leading the downturn were Specialized Investment Compounds with a loss of 53.1%, Arab German Insurance at 45.79% and Al Tajamouat for Catering and Housing at 45.7%. On the other hand, Afaq Energy Comp led the market with gains of 55.91% followed by Contempro For Housing Projects and Jordan Ceramic Industries, which added 54.8% and 33.9%, respectively.
Abu Dhabi SM (one month)
Current Year High: 4,416.08 Current Year Low: 2,136.64
Like its neighboring Dubai Financial Market, the Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange (ADX) index suffered from the global mood swings of equity markets, which pulled the market down sharply in the middle of August. However, sentiment on the ADX was less destructive as more sectors ended in the positive and the index finished our review period at 2,829.5 points, up 1.02%. The two leading sectors were Energy and Real Estate gaining 9.87% and 8.94%, respectively. Aabar properties posted the best returns with a 21.4% gain during our review period. Gulf Cement and Abu Dhabi Ship Building Company followed with increases of 19.01% and 15.89%, respectively. On the other hand, Banking and Consumer sectors were the period’s laggards with losses of 2.26% and 1.29%, respectively, following the global trend of cyclical underperformance. Banks and Insurance companies suffered the most, but the worst performance came from International Fish Farming Holding, which shed 27.07%.
Dubai FM (one month)
Current Year High: 4,802.38 Current Year Low: 1,433.14
The mid-month correction at the Dubai Financial Market (DFM) was more pronounced than any other regional exchange, suffering a peak to trough fall of 9.1% before the index finished the review period up 1.58% at 1,847.09 points on August 24. Although Emaar’s earnings were hit by writedowns from exposure to US real estate, the company’s shares still posted strong gains of 14.96%, leading the real estate sector to the top with a 6.95% gain. All other sectors except the defensive Consumer Staples, which rose 4.81%, were in the red, reflecting the markets continued risk-averseness. Trailing the market were Utilities and Materials sectors which lost 5.32% and 2.39%, respectively. Following Emaar in top performance were Emirates NBD and Arab Insurance Group with gains of 11.69% and 11.11%, respectively, after trailing the market in July. Still, some positive news came from a Colliers report that showed a 9% decline in Dubai property prices in the second quarter, a sign of stabilization after a 42% plunge in the first three months of the year.
Kuwait SE (one month)
Current Year High: 14,516.10 Current Year Low: 6,391.50
The Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) index was little affected by the fluctuation in oil prices and equity markets abroad as the uptrend maintained strength throughout the month of August. The index ended our review period up 2.97% to 7,907.2 on the back of strong gains in the Industrial and Food sectors, which led market performance with 13.19% and 10.55% gains, respectively. On the other hand, the Real Estate and Insurance sectors suffered from losses of 3.45% and 2.84%, respectively. The leading stocks were National investments Company (116.95%), Gulf Cable and Electrical Industries (47.69%), and Kuwait Syrian Holding Company (47.22%), while the worst performing stocks were Dar Al Thuraya Real Estate (-33.11%), Ajial Real Estate Entertainment (-32.67%) and Nafais Holding (-25.4%). In corporate news, several companies reported weak second quarter earnings results, including National Industries which said its net profit fell 57%, and Jazeera Airways which announced a net loss of $4.4 million. Some of the positive earnings included Wataniya Telecom, which said its second quarter profit surged 139% to $222 million.
Saudi Arabia SE (one month)
Current Year High: 8,898.97 Current Year Low: 4,130.01
A drop in oil prices and a major global equity correction drove the Saudi Stock Exchange (TASI) index down 2.6% through the middle of August. However, the recovery in oil prices and the flurry of positive reports by international institutions led the index back to 5,789.78 points by August 24, an increase of 0.2% over July. Fears of the possible fallout from the credit-troubled Saad Group and Al Gosaibi took the back stage as the IMF and several international investment banks highlighted the resilience of the country’s banking sector, backed by the government’s vast liquidity. The Petrochemical sector led the market with a 4.84% and the Cement sector came second with a 2.36% return, followed by Insurance, which gained over 10% during the month but ended with a weaker 0.93% increase. On the other hand, after leading the market in July, the Hotel and Tourism sector lagged with a 5.68% drop, followed by Construction at -4.75% and Multi-Investment at -3.66%.
Muscat SM (one month)
Current Year High: 9,904.68 Current Year Low: 4,223.63
The Muscat Securities Market (MSM) index leapt 6.69% to 6,237.33 points during the review period through August 25, with little interruption from the global equity sell-off that brought down markets all around Oman. Indeed, all three market sectors posted strong gains, led by Banking with a 12.48% increase, followed by Industrial at 11.17% and finally Services, with a still strong return of 3.5%. The market’s leading stocks were Gulf International Chemicals, National Aluminum Products, and Oman National Investment Corporation which rose 59.78%, 36.04% and 35.46%, respectively. On the other hand, Al Ahlia Converting Industries was far down the queue with losses of -45.65%, followed by National Mineral Water Company and Oman Chromite Company which lost 9.71% and 8.82%, respectively.
Bahrain SE (one month)
Current Year High: 2,696.68 Current Year Low: 1,481.06
After posting major losses in July, the Bahrain Stock Exchange (BSE) index picked up the pieces in August, reaching 1,514.08 points on an increase of 0.61%. In fact, the market traded in the flat band throughout the whole month and unlike other exchanges, the BSE did not witness much of a correction in the middle of the month. The banking sector still managed to lead the month’s performance with a 7.5% gain, far outpacing its nearest competition from the Services sector which added 3.3%. The period’s best stocks were Ahli United Bank, which gained 14.89%. Nass Corporation and Bahrain Commercial Facilities made gains of 14.41% and 13.66%, respectively, while United Gulf Bank and Gulf Finance House posted the steepest losses of 22.2% and 18.24%, respectively. The worst performing sectors were Investments and Hotels and Tourism which were down 5.88% and 1.06%, respectively.
Doha SM (one month)
Current Year High: 10,550.27 Current Year Low: 4,230.19
The Qatar Exchange index came back from a mid-month foreign-driven 5% correction to end our review period at 6,928.06 points, up 3.28%. The exchange is still benefiting from the banking sector’s strong second quarter earnings, supported by the government’s willingness to help clean up the bank’s balance sheets and free up bank capital for lending. The banking sector continued to lead the market for the second consecutive month with a gain of 4.59%, followed by Services at 2.69% and Insurance at 1.01%. The Industrial sector lost a meager 0.16% through August 24. The uncontested stock leader of the period was Ezden Real Estate Company, which leapt 74.26% despite giving back more than 35% of its early August gains. Zad Holding and Qatar National Bank followed with increases of 14.29% and 10.82%, respectively. The worst performance came from Qatar Cinema and Film Distribution Company with a 17.78% loss, while Al Khaliji Commercial Bank lost 8.43%.
Tunis SE (one month)
Current Year High: 3,697.32 Current Year Low: 2,836.64
The Tunisia Stock Exchange Index (Tunindex) recovered its July losses and added 1.94% to reach 3,685.64 points as of August 25, as the country’s 27.5% market rally this year still seems to be alive. Leading the only-slightly-interrupted trend in July was Attijara Leasing Company with a gain of 27.18%, followed by Société Tunisienne des Industries de Pneumatique at 15.51% and Compagnie Internationale de Leasing with 14.04%. On the other hand, the market laggards were Société Générale Industrielle de Filtration (-12.81%), Société de Production Agricole de Téboulba (-10.18%), and Industries Chimiques du Fluor (-4.54%). Tunisia moved one step closer in its bid to increase oil refinery capacity after it awarded the contract to build and operate the Skhira oil refinery project to oil and gas services company Petrofac, for a total cost of $500 million and a capacity of 150,000 barrels per day.
Casablanca SE (one month)
Current Year High: 14,083.91 Current Year Low: 9,405.86
Continuing its weak performance from July, the Casablanca Stock Exchange (CSE) index suffered from a lack of direction during August to finish our review period up 0.85% to 11,064.92 points. Although the country continues to suffer from the fallout in tourism activity, the decline in exports, and the drop in remittances, recent figures showed the overall number of tourists increased 9% during the first six months of 2009 compared to the same period in 2008. However, it was the Telecom sector that lagged behind in 2009, dropping 8.9%, followed by Construction and Building Materials at -6.54%. The best performing sectors on a year-to-date basis are Beverages, Transport and Mining at 76.94%, 67.92%, and 58.71%, respectively. The market was led by Attijariwafa Bank, which added 7.9% through August 24 and M2M Group with a 7.17% gain, while Matel PC Market shed 8.9% and Société Nationale d’Investissement fell 6.99%.
Egypt CASE (one month)
Current Year High: 8,480.53 Current Year Low: 3,389.31
The Cairo and Alexandria Stock Exchange (CASE) pared its losses and led the MENA region with a gain of 7.24% to reach a new 2009 peak of 6,620.38 points. The country signed six oil and natural gas exploration agreements worth $2.3 billion, aimed at exploring oil and gas in the Nile Delta, the Eastern Desert and the Gulf of Suez. Several companies reported increases in net profit in the first half, including Egypt Telecom, El Nasr Transformers, and Oriental Weavers. Leading the market was Arab Land Reclamation which leapt 72.58%, followed by Assiut Islamic Trading with a 72.54% gain and Acrow Misr, which added 55.53% during our review period. On the other hand, Egyptian Real Estate Group posted the sharpest decline with a loss of 21.97%, behind Ismailia National Company for Food Industries with a loss of 21.38% and Nile Company for Pharmaceuticals and Chemical Industries which lost 20.76%.
