Middle Eastern stocks rose on Tuesday as oil prices and global equities firmed slightly, and because of expectations that Saudi Arabia's state budget would be announced next Monday. Investors had been expecting the Saudi budget release this week but Saudi-owned Al Arabiya television reported late on Monday, quoting sources, that it would come on Dec. 28. "Now that traders expect the news next week, today's trading resumed as per usual with investors picking up stocks to turn a quick profit," said Tarek Al-Mady, a Riyadh-based independent financial analyst. The Saudi index rose 1.7 percent to 7,047 points. Alinma Bank gained 2.4 percent and was the most heavily traded stock after it announced a dividend cash payout of 0.5 riyal per share for 2015, in line with its 2014 dividend. It is the second Saudi bank to announce an annual dividend. Saudi Hollandi Bank last week proposed a cash payout which was 75 percent lower, but also announced a large bonus share issue. The oldest lender in the kingdom was 4.4 percent higher on Tuesday. Saudi Telecom (STC) fell 1.9 percent after the board of Kuwait's Viva advised shareholders that the pricing of STC's takeover offer was not fair. STC said it would proceed with its offer and did not intend to change the price. Dubai's index rose 1.5 percent to 3,147 points, adding to Monday's gains. Builder Arabtec, often volatile, surged 14.2 percent, easing pressure from the decline of heavyweight Emaar Properties, which retreated 1.5 percent. Abu Dhabi's bourse added 0.4 percent to 4,209 points, buffered by blue chip banks; it posted its fifth straight session of gains. Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank and National Bank of Abu Dhabi rose 3.3 and 0.8 percent respectively. "Abu Dhabi's banks have remained relatively resilient because the US interest rate hike on Wednesday, with the UAE central bank following suit, will help the profitability of those banks," said a Dubai-based banking sector analyst. The outlook for credit growth in the short term may not be as rosy as in prior years owing to pressure on macroeconomic growth, but the medium-term outlook is resilient because of improved asset quality and lower provisioning for bad loans, said a note by Emirati research firm Alramz. Qatar's index rebounded 2.7 percent to 10,175 points, recouping all of Monday's losses and exceeding the 10,000-point level for the first time since Dec. 9. "Today's session was a pure buy-on-dips play," said a Doha-based trader. Vodafone Qatar was the top gainer, surging 9.9 percent. Egypt's benchmark edged up 0.1 percent, closing higher for a seventh straight session, with Orascom Telecom and EFG Hermes carrying the market higher. Combined, the stocks accounted for about one-third of the market's total value traded.
