A 22 percent rise in the value of market leader Solidere helped Lebanon's BLOM to a 6.9 percent increase to lead Arab stock markets in a positive week, Bakheet Financial Advisors (BFA) said Saturday, November 3.
BLOM closed the week ending Friday at 439.26 points. Seven more markets rose on the week, while only four others fell, BFA reported. Palestinian Al-Quds Index, which was the worst performer last week, ended the week up 3.6 percent at 177.79 points on the back of a lull in hostilities and a limited Israeli withdrawal from Palestinian-controlled territories.
Egypt's Hermes Financial Index was the worst performer, falling 2.9 percent on the week to close at 5,548.61 points, over a drop in blue chip stocks. The Amman stock exchange index closed the week at 164.89 points, up 1.9 percent on the previous seven days over active trading in the banking sector.
The Bahrain Stock Exchange index was the best performer in the oil-rich Gulf Arab states. It gained 1.6 percent to close at 1,779.94 points on the rise of banking shares. Qatar's CBQ index closed at 258.67 points, up 1.4 percent on a rise in most shares, especially banking and services, while the United Arab Emirates NBAD index closed at 2,548.13 points, up 0.8 percent.
The Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) index rose 0.6 percent to close at 1,659.70 points, while the Tunisian TUNINDEX closed at 1,281.22 points, an increase of 0.5 percent.
The Saudi NCFEI all-share index fell 0.8 percent to close at 2,366.04 points, affected mainly by a sharp drop in nine-month profits of market leaders Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC), and a fall in oil prices, BFA said. Oman's MSM index was down 1.2 percent to close at 162.06 points, while in Morocco, the CSE index closed at 574.10 points, a decline of 2.2 percent. — (AFP, Riyadh)
© Agence France Presse 2001
© 2001 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
