TRIBUNE NEWS NETWORK

DOHA

THE Qatar Exchange benchmark index fell 57 points, or 0.6 percent, to 8,829 on Sunday, weighed by Qatar National Bank which fell 1.6 percent. Qatar National Bank, Qatar’s largest lender, is due to report 2011 earnings on Monday. NBK Capital has recommended buying stocks which have dipped recently, adding the trend on the index remains up. “We expect a climb close to 9,140-9,300 points,” NBK Capital said in a note.

Meanwhile, Dubai’s index led losses among Gulf Arab peers on Sunday as investors stayed on the sidelines awaiting earnings reports, while Saudi shares bulked the regional trend to end at a five-month high. Bourse operator Dubai Financial Market fell 2.9 percent, weighing on the broader index which declined 1 percent.

Emirates NBD slipped 2.1 percent while Dubai Islamic Bank dropped 1 percent. “I believe that markets are continuing in their sideway range movement in the absence of news or companies results to change that status quo,” said Mohammed Ali Yasin, chief investment officer at CAPM Investment.

“UAE is continuing with its anemic trading values which indicates the continued lack of interest by investors in the equities markets.” In Saudi Arabia, Etihad Etisalat (Mobily) helped lift the index to a fivemonth closing high, after a research note forecast that the telecoms operator’s quarterly earnings would rise am estimated 12 percent.

Banking stocks helped lift Oman’s index however, which also bucked the regional trend and ended higher on Sunday.