The regional investors have been subjected to psychological pressures in the past week as global markets fluctuated feverishly trying to digest the impact of first quarter corporate results. Though in general the regional showed stability vis-à-vis the other markets , investors remained wary and sensitive to what takes transpired in other international markets. Under the bleak atmosphere, speculation in small caps seemed to be the call of the day, with investors trying to avoid commitment to long-term positions to evade losses. “It seems that what happens in the US determines the mood here,” said Shahid Hameed, head of asset management, GCC, at Global Investment House in Kuwait. “With the lower close (in the US) late yesterday we were expecting a negative day here in the region.” The Saudi stock market dipped this week following a 32 percent rise in five straight weeks of gains. “There is still caution among investors but sentiment is vastly different to the fear we saw just a few months ago,” another analyst said. The Tadawul All Share Index (TASI) was affected this week by the sharp decline in global markets on Monday in addition to the negative results of Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic), which was contrary to analysts' expectations as the company suffered losses worth SR974 million for the first quarter of 2009, compared to losses of SR311 million in the fourth quarter of 2008. Moreover, the remaining financial results of Saudi companies were relatively unimpressive this week as Saudi Telecom Company (STC) reported a net income of SR2.48 billion for the first quarter of 2009 compared to SR3.02 million in the first quarter of 2008, down 18 percent. Furthermore, Etihad Etisalat declared a net income of SR480 million for the first quarter of 2009 compared to SR326 million in the first quarter of 2008, up by 47 percent. However, the market bounced back strongly toward the end of the week, up more than three percent after investors returned when several stock prices became attractive. The index closed at 5,216.84 on Wednesday, down 3.0 percent from last week. The index has risen 8.6 percent this year. Trading value reached SR34.1 billion, up from last week's SR31.4 billion. The top five gainers were: Sanad Insurance and Reinsurance Cooperative Co. (31.8 percent), Astra Industrial Group Co (17.6 percent) Kingdom Holding Co. (14 percent) and Arabian Cement Co. (13.8 percent). The top five losing firms were: Takaful Co. (-14.9 percent), Saudi Vitrified Clay Pipe Co. Ltd (-14.4 percent), Riyad Bank (-11.7 percent) Arabian Pipes Co. (-11.6 percent) and Gulf Union Cooperative Insurance Co. (-11.6 percent). The Saudi market is expected to be steady as investors are re-evaluating their positions, based on the unexpected negative financial results announced by some joint stock companies, particularly SABIC. But investors are likely to be cautious about the significant rise by speculative stocks in the absence of positive fundamentals for those stocks, an analyst said. The United Arab Emirates shares were the scene for strong volatility this week as traders came under pressure from developments on world markets, analysts said. The benchmark prices of the UAE stock exchanges of Dubai and Abu Dhabi declined 3.5 percent and 4.3 percent this week to close at 1,653 points and 2,565 points respectively. The Dubai benchmark fell 1.46 percent to 1,653 points on Thursday. The Abu Dhabi index declined 0.81 percent to 2,565 points. Kuwait's KSE all-share price index closed week almost unchanged at 7,419 points. On Thursday, tracking weakness in US shares on Wednesday, Bahraini stocks suffered their biggest one-day fall in more than two years. “There was a lot of negative news on the stock as they reported significant losses on their investments last year,” said Jithesh Gopi, head of research at Securities and Investment Co in Bahrain. The Bahrain bourse fell 4.8 percent to 1,581 points. “However, the stock hasn't traded for some months now and so probably what we are seeing is investors pricing in some of those negative news,” he added. The Oman measure slipped 0.11 percent to 5,262 points. The Qatar benchmark gained 0.9 percent to 5,333 points. Industries Qatar advanced 2.62 percent. __
