Gulf stock markets rise as real estate stocks rise
personAhmed Samir
September 03, 2020
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The Dubai Stock Exchange led the gains among the Gulf markets at the close of trading Thursday, and real estate stocks witnessed a wave of gains.
On the other hand, the Egyptian Stock Exchange continued to incur losses for the fifth consecutive session.
The main Saudi index rose 0.4%. Al-Rajhi Bank rose 2.3%.
Shares of the Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) also rose 0.5%.
The Saudi Capital Market Authority said on Wednesday that it would allow foreigners to directly invest in debt instruments, in a new step paving the way to open the kingdom's market to investors from abroad.
Dubai’s main index rose 3.1% with the support of Dubai Islamic Bank, which rose 3.1%.
Real estate stocks rise
Emaar Properties also rose 2.8%.
Dubai is trying to attract wealthy foreign retirees. The emirate’s economy is a center for trade and tourism in the Middle East.
But the emirate's economy is suffering under the weight of the coronavirus pandemic and the drop in oil prices. This prompted many expatriates to leave.
The new law may boost the real estate market in Dubai, which has been suffering from an oversupply for years.
Abu Dhabi index rose 0.1% with the support of First Abu Dhabi Bank, which is the largest bank in the country. The latter's shares were up 0.4.
Qatar’s stock market index rose 0.3%, led by a 0.6% gain for Qatar Islamic Bank.
Outside the Gulf, the main Egyptian index fell 0.3%. The Commercial International Bank fell by 0.6%, while Telecom Egypt fell by 2.9%.
Thursday's survey showed that Egypt's non-oil private sector contraction accelerated in August, after that pace slowed in July.
This indicates that Egypt has not returned to the normal course after a slowdown that lasted for months due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Middle-East Stock Indices
The following are the closing levels of the Arab stock indices on Thursday:
