By Santhosh V Perumal
The Qatar Exchange yesterday snapped a three-day bull-run despite strong buying support from local retail investors.
Profit booking – especially in transport, telecom and banking sectors – dragged the 20-stock Qatar Index (based on price data) by 0.28% to 10,366.21 points.
The key index has been remaining above the 10,000 mark since November 11.
Amidst an overall bearish overhang, the index that tracks Shariah-principled stocks extended marginal gains in the market, which is up 24.01% year-to-date.
Selling pressure was visible among domestic and foreign institutions as well as non-Qatari retail investors.
Overall market liquidity fell owing to slippages in real estate, consumer goods, transport and banking sector volumes.
About 48% of the stocks were in the red with major losers being QNB, Nakilat, Barwa and Ooredoo.
However, Industries Qatar, Commercial Bank, Widam Food, Vodafone Qatar, Mazaya Qatar and United Development Company bucked the trend.
The 20-stock Total Return Index rose 0.28% to 14,810.93 points and the All Share Index (with wider constituents) by 0.3% to 2,581.79 points, while the Al Rayan Islamic Index was up 0.07% to 3,041.46 points. All the three indices factored in dividend income as well.
Transport stocks depreciated 0.78%, followed by telecom (0.67%), banks and financial services (0.45%), realty (0.22%), industrials (0.03%) and insurance (0.02%); while consumer goods gained 0.24%.
Market capitalisation eroded 0.33%, or about QR2bn, to QR554.18bn. Large caps equities fell 0.46%, followed by small (0.31%) and mid (0.19%); whereas micro caps rose 0.4%.
Domestic institutions were net sellers to the tune of QR12.12mn compared with net buyers of QR5.25mn on Sunday.
Foreign institutions were also net sellers to the extent of QR5.5mn against net buyers of QR12.87mn the previous day.
Non-Qatari individuals were net sellers to the tune of QR7.62mn compared with net buyers of QR2.83mn on Sunday.
However, Qatari individual investors were net buyers to the extent of QR25.26mn against net sellers of QR20.95mn the pervious day.
Total trading volume was down 4% to 9.19mn stocks, value by 7% to QR268.2mn and transactions by 9% to 4,133.
The consumer goods sector’s trading volume plummeted 39% to 1.12mn shares, value by 11% to QR46.77mn and deals by 1% to 690.
The transport sector witnessed 29% plunge in trading volume to 2.01mn equities, 33% in value to QR42.82mn and 35% in transactions to 407.
The market witnessed 28% shrinkage in industrials sector’s trading volume to 0.41mn stocks, 13% in value to QR31.44mn and 20% in deals to 588.
The real estate sector’s trading volume tanked 26% to 1.12mn shares, value by 9% to QR26.31mn and transactions by 19% to 443.
The banks and financial services sector reported 18% decline in trading volume to 1.57mn equities, 8% in value to QR76.17mn and 24% in deals to 1,166.
However, the telecom sector’s trading volume more than tripled to 2.74mn stocks, value surged 82% to QR32.61mn and transactions by 64% to 450.
The insurance sector saw its trading volume soar 92% to 0.23mn shares and value by 79% to QR12.07mn on more than tripled deals to 389.
In the debt market, there was no trading of bonds and treasury bills.
India power transmission firm’s FPO starts today
Power Grid Corp of India Limited (PGCIL), India’s principal power transmission company, has given an opportunity to potential investors, including the non-resident Indians, to invest in the South Asian country’s transmission sector.
According to an Indian embassy communique issued in Doha, PGCIL owns and operates over 90% of the national transmission grid in India. As of September 30, the company operated a network of 102,109 circuit kilometres of inter-state transmission lines, 172 EHV AC and HVDC substations with transmission capacity of 172,378 MVA.
The PGCIL, it said, has announced a further public offer (FPO), comprising fresh issue of 601.8mn equity shares and an offer for sale of 185.2mn equity shares held by Government of India. There is no lock in/minimum holding period for investors. The price band for the issue is Rs85-Rs90 per share. The offer would constitute 15.04% of the post-offer paid-up equity capital of the company.
On a consolidated basis, the gross fixed assets, revenues and net profits of PGCIL have grown from $556mn, $100mn and $37mn respectively in fiscal year 1993 to $12,990mn, $2,166mn and $681mn respectively in fiscal year 2013.
The objectives of the FPO issue are to deploy Rs46,000mn towards development of 27 transmission projects in fiscal 2014 and fiscal 2015.
The issue starts today and closes on Thursday for Qualified Institutional Buyers (QIBs).
