IQ, GIS profit-booking weighs on stocks

By Santhosh V Perumal/Business Reporter

Profit-booking, especially in Industries Qatar (IQ) and Gulf International Services (GIS), yesterday weakened the Qatar Exchange.

The 20-stock QE Index (based on price data) fell 0.51% to 8,570.14 points amid severe selling pressure in the low-volume insurance segment.

Small and large cap equities witnessed selling pressure in the market, which is, however, up 2.53% year-to-date (YTD).

Industrials, consumer goods, transport, telecom and banking sectors outperformed the index by gaining 11.01%, 10.80%, 10.05%, 9.75% and 5.04% YTD respectively. The real estate and insurance indices plunged 5.04% and 3.26% respectively.

Other major losers included Commercialbank, QNB and Mazaya Qatar; even as Widam, Vodafone Qatar and Nakilat bucked the trend.

While the 20-stock Total Return Index gained 0.57% to 12,099.79 points and the All Share Index (comprising wider constituents) by 0.35% to 2,149.26 points, the Al Rayan Islamic Index lost 0.57% to 2,560.01 points. All the three indices factored in dividend income as well.

Under the All Share Index category, the industrials index gained 1.42%, followed by industrials (0.60%), telecom (0.51%) and transport (0.23%), while insurance fell 2.11%, realty 0.28% and banks and financial services 0.12%.

Market capitalisation eroded 0.74%, or about QR4bn, to QR467.05bn with small and large cap equities notably melting 1.28% and 0.53% respectively. Mid caps rose 0.23%.

Mid and large cap equities have gained 5.63% and 2.10% YTD, while micro and small caps lost 4.48% and 2.56% respectively.

Of the 42 stocks, only 12 advanced, while 22 declined, five were unchanged and three were not traded.

Domestic institutions’ net buying rose to 4.88% or QR15.48mn. A higher 22.48% of them were into buying against 20.09% the previous day and a higher 17.60% of them into selling compared to 16.42%.

Qatari individual investors turned net sellers to the extent of 2.75% or QR8.72mn. A lower 30.79% of them purchased equities against 37.50% on Monday and a lower 33.54% sold compared to 36.84%.

Foreign institutions’ net profit-booking fell to 1.69% or QR5.36mn. A higher 33.56% of them bought equities against 24.21% the previous day and a higher 35.24% offloaded compared to 27.04%.

Non-Qatari individual investors’ net selling fell to 0.44% or QR1.40mn. A lower 13.17% of them bought equities against 18.21% on Monday and a lower 13.61% sold compared to 19.70%.

Total trading volume gained 39% to 5.64mn shares and value more than doubled to QR317.13mn on a 48% jump in deals to 4,231.

The industrials sector’s trading volume grew about 11-fold to 1.18mn shares and value by 32-fold to QR152.75mn on a more than 13-fold gain in transactions to 1,370.

The consumer goods and services sector’s trading volume almost tripled to 0.43mn shares and value more than doubled to QR45.03mn on a 66% jump in deals to 571.

The telecom sector’s trading volume doubled to 0.48mn shares, value surged 36% to QR10.95mn and transactions by 79% to 195.

The transport sector’s trading volume zoomed 84% to 1.18mn shares, value by 68% to QR23.81mn and deals by 47% to 444.

The real estate sector’s trading volume soared 43% to 0.93mn shares, value by 36% to QR19.42mn and transactions by 4% to 428.

However, the insurance sector’s trading volume plummeted 62% to 0.05mn shares, value by 69% to QR1.95mn and deals by 49% to 61.

The banks and financial services sector’s trading volume plunged 35% to 1.39mn shares, value by 28% to QR63.22mn and transactions by 21% to 1,162.

Actively traded stocks (in terms of volume) were Nakilat (1.10mn shares); IQ (848,293); Barwa (611,913); Masraf Al Rayan (496,975) and Vodafone Qatar (414,758).