(MENAFN- The Peninsula) Qatar's bourse extended its record-breaking spree with the main index hitting a new peak after adding 1.04 percent to finish at 12,987.95 yesterday, breaking the recent high of 12,939.80.
The index continues to advance on the back of strong buying interest from Qatari individuals and foreign institutions.
Industrials sector rose the most with the Investors surging 6.44 percent. Banks and financials gained 1.08 percent with International Islamic and QIB edging 2.24 percent and 2.16 percent up, respectively. QNB advanced 1.76 percent. Real estate sector added 1.31 percent with Barwa adding 1.56 percent. Ezdan slipped 1.59 percent.
The bourse's market cap rose to QR733bn from Sunday's QR727bn. Total traded value rose to QR1.25bn from QR1.00bn. Traded volume surged to 32 million shares from 30 million shares.
Last week, QE indices entered a correction process after the general index reached the highest level in its history. The transactions of the week coincided with disclosure of the first quarter financial results. The combined profit of other listed companies in Qatar grew 8.6 percent year-on-year in the first quarter.
The index may face resistance at the psychologically important 13,000 point level or the historical intra-day high of 13,069 points reached in 2005. "Once the market breaks that, we may see some more upside," Reuters quoted Shakeel Sarwar, head of asset management at Securities & Investment Co in Bahrain as saying. Sarwar said the upswing reflected the "general bullish mood among investors in the region".
Elsewhere, Dubai's bourse gained 1.6 percent, led by Dubai Islamic Bank, which added 6.3 percent. The lender's shares have been rising since last Thursday when it posted a doubling of first-quarter net profit and said it was in talks to buy a 40 percent stake in an Indonesian Islamic lender.
Abu Dhabi's index rose 0.6 percent, buoyed by First Gulf Bank, whose shares were up 1.5 percent. RAKBank, Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank, Commercial Bank International and United Arab Bank were also among the main supports. In Bahrain, Arab Banking Corporation continued its bull run, adding 6.9 percent. Saudi Arabia's main index edged down 0.2 percent as several stocks that had driven the upswing for the last three sessions retreated.
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