(MENAFN - The Peninsula) Vodafone Qatar gained yesterday as strong net buying support from foreign institutional investors pushed the 20-stock index of the Qatari bourse (Qatar Exchange) slightly up.
Vodafone has been ruling at less than its nominal or face value of QR10 after being listed on the bourse recently. But at the close of yesterday's trading it improved to QR9.45 due to increased demand.
The benchmark index of Qatar Exchange went up a little over 70 points after non-Qatari institutional investors resumed their buying spree having booked profit in the interim.
But the index was down by a slight 3.50 points in the five-day weekly trading. Having recently breached the psychological barrier of 7,500, the index had dropped below the level, but with yesterday's recovery it inched up again to 7,485.
Yesterday, some 25 stocks advanced, while 11 fell and six remained unchanged. Three counters led by the industrial sector gained but the surge was below one percent. The industrial stocks rose 1.57 percent. The insurance sector remained unchanged.
Among individual gainers were, aside from Vodafone, Qatar-Oman, Qatar Meat and Livestock Company (Mawashi), Salam International, Qatar German Medical Devices Company, Doha Insurance, Qatar Insurance and Ahli Bank.
In weekly trading, the index fell slightly but the trading value and volume as well as the number of transactions concluded on the bourse rose as compared considerably to the previous week.
The increase was due to the fact that trading took place only on two trading days the previous week on account of Eid Al Fitr holidays. The trading value was up more than 152 percent during the week that ended yesterday, while the volume surged as much as 253 percent. The market capitalisation gained barely QR1.85bn to reach QR338.91.
Fundamentally formidable Industries Qatar (IQ) led in terms of trading value last week accounting for 8.86 percent in the total, while Qatar Gas Transport Company (Nakilat) came in second with an 8.36 percent share in the total. The third spot was bagged by Al Rayan Bank.
