(MENAFN - The Peninsula) Qatar Exchange was down yesterday 12.45 points or 0.15 percent to 8,129.67 points from 8,142.12 on Tuesday.
The volume of shares traded up to 4,309,714 from 4,019,599 on Tuesday, and the value of shares increased to QR172,203,875.80 from QR153,508,357.15 on Tuesday.
Among the top loser were Gulf warehousing Company whose share dropped by 0.88 percent to QR22.50 points.
The banking and financial sector lost 43.12 points and the insurance sector up 27.76 points. The Qatar industrial sector dropped 95.08 points and the Services sector added 1.62 points.
Meanwhile, Kuwaits index slumped to a two-month low yesterday on market talk that a Zain shareholder had filed a court case against the company over a slated 12bn stake sale to Abu Dhabis Etisalat.
Zain shares fell 1.4 percent to 1.400 dinars.
After market hours, Zain board member Sheikh Khalifa Ali Al Khalifa Al Sabah told Reuters that Al Fawares Holding, which he said owns about 4.5 percent in Zain, had filed a court case against opening the firms books to Etisalat.
We do not know what the decision of the judge would be, but expect this would at least postpone the deal, said Naser Al Nafisi, general manager for Al Joman Center for Economic Consultancy in Kuwait.
Major Zain shareholder Kharafi group is the main player in a plan to sell a controlling Zain stake to Etisalat. This is priced at 1.700 dinars per share, but will not be done on a pro rata basis, leading to protests from other big shareholders. Zains shares are up 11 percent since the deal was agreed in late September.
A Zain spokesman said: Zain management does not comment on the actions of shareholders or board of directors.
Saudi Basic Industries Corp (Sabic) climbed 1.2 percent, as oil price gains boosted Saudi petrochemical stocks, but banks were mixed.
Oil was up 1.5 percent at 85.32 a barrel at 1231 GMT as rising Chinese factory output and a report saying US inventories fell countered concern about Europes debts.
Petrochemicals stocks will be affected by volatility on international markets, said Saleh Al Onazi, vice-president of principal investment at Swicorp in Riyadh.
Samba Financial Group fell 2.2 percent, while SABB dropped one percent after Goldman Sachs cuts its price target on the lender.
The banking index slipped 0.2 percent, taking its losses to 7.1 percent since September 25.
The trend is unclear in terms of bank provisions and this lack of clarity is making it very difficult for investors, added Onazi. We have a debt crisis in Europe, so maybe its not a good time to buy into Saudi banks. I wouldnt be comfortable unless bank stocks reach very attractive valuations.
Dubais index made its largest gain in three weeks, but traders said this was down to upbeat global markets, rather than Dubai Holdings main unit extending a 555m loan due November 30 to December 30, the third extension of the facility. The delay is to a arrange a new long-term facility, the conglomerate said.
A longer-term restructuring for Dubai Holding would remove some of the fog and would potentially be positive for Dubai names such as Emaar and others such as Aramex and DP World that are Dubai-based but not Dubai-centric, said Hashem Montasser of EFG-Hermes.
