The Qatar Stock Exchange witnessed strong buying support from Gulf funds as well as local and non-Qatari retail investors but overall it settled marginally weak.

Industrials and transport counters witnessed profit-booking pressure to effect a 0.08% decline in the 20-stock Qatar Index to 8,721.75 points.

Foreign institutions turned bearish and there was increased net selling by their domestic counterparts on the market, which is however up 2.33% year-to-date.

The Doha Bank and Masraf Al Rayan sponsored exchange traded funds QETF and QATR saw 0.64% and 0.17% declines respectively.

Notwithstanding surge in microcap equities, the capitalisation saw a marginal 0.01% decline to QR479.73bn.

Trade turnover and volumes were on the decline on the market, where banking, real estate and industrials sectors together accounted for about 76% of the total volume.

The Total Return Index was down 0.08% to 15,366.08 points and Al Rayan Islamic Index (Price) by 0.03% to 2,213.35 points, while All Share Index rose 0.08% to 2,570.45 points.

The industrials and transport indices declined 0.86% and 0.24% respectively; whereas insurance gained 1.58%, consumer goods (1.21%), telecom (0.9%), realty (0.17%) and banks and financial services (0.1%).

About 50% of the traded stocks were in the red with major losers being Mazaya Qatar, Qatar Electricity and Water, Industries Qatar, Mesaieed Petrochemical Holding, Doha Bank, Alijarah Holding, Qatar First Bank, Qatar National Cement, Milaha and United Development Company; while Woqod, Barwa, Ezdan, Vodafone Qatar and Gulf Warehousing were among the gainers.

Non-Qatari institutions turned net sellers to the tune of QR1.9mn against net buyers of QR12.37mn on April 2.

Domestic funds’ net profit booking increased perceptibly to QR24.89mn compared to QR22.11mn on Monday.

The Gulf individual investors’ net buying weakened marginally to QR0.83mn against QR1.21mn the previous day.

However, the Gulf institutions’ net buying strengthened influentially to QR10.83mn compared to QR2.03mn on April 2.

Local individual investors’ net buying grew considerably to QR10.25mn against QR8.38mn on Monday.

Non-Qatari individuals turned net buyers to the extent of QR4.93mn compared with net sellers of QR1.91mn the previous day.

Total trade volume fell 33% to 9.98mn shares and value by 26% to QR223.21mn; while transactions rose 15% to 4,200.

There was 74% plunge in the insurance sector’s trade volume to 0.08mn equities, 70% in value to QR2.32mn and 23% in deals to 95.

The industrials sector’s trade volume plummeted 60% to 2.08mn stocks, value by 47% to QR50.28mn and transactions by 21% to 973.

The transport sector reported 55% shrinkage in trade volume to 0.3mn shares and 73% in value to QR6.27mn but on 8% rise in deals to 204.

The banks and financial services sector’s trade volume tanked 46% to 2.94mn equities and value by 26% to QR84.21mn, whereas transactions gained 38% to 1,289.

However, telecom sector’s trade volume more than doubled to 1.65mn stocks and value also more than doubled to QR17.78mn on almost doubled deals to 389.

The market witnessed 81% surge in the consumer goods sector’s trade volume to 0.38mn shares, 46% in value to QR28.02mn and 42% in transactions to 436.

The real estate sector’s trade volume was up 2% to 2.54mn equities, while value declined 6% to QR34.33mn despite 26% higher deals to 814.

In the debt market, there was no trading of treasury bills and sovereign bonds.