Stock markets in the Middle East were mixed on Monday with Saudi Arabia rising on the back of a rebound in oil prices.
The Tadawul All Share Index (TASI) climbed 0.6 percent. Top petrochemical producer Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC), whose margins could benefit from higher oil prices, gained 0.5 percent.
But PetroRabigh, which had tumbled its 10 percent daily limit on Sunday after reporting a sharp widening of its quarterly loss, sank a further 5.4 percent.
Real estate developer Dar Al-Arkan was the most heavily traded stock and added 3.9 percent after saying its board had accepted the resignation of Abdulrehman Hamad Al-Harkan as chief executive, effective on June 1, for personal reasons. It did not name a new CEO.
Dubai’s index slipped 1.1 percent on a late wave of selling as DXB Entertainments sank 5.6 percent to its lowest level since April 2015.
Investors have been disappointed by attendance figures at the company’s parks and last week it reported a wider first-quarter loss, warning that attendance was likely to fall in the next two-quarters.
Builder Arabtec was the second most heavily traded issue in Dubai, while rights to subscribe to its capital increase were the most heavily traded.
Abu Dhabi’s index dropped 0.6 percent but Qatar rose 0.6 percent on the back of several blue chips such as Doha Bank, up 1.3 percent, and Barwa Real Estate, which gained 1.4 percent.
Kuwait was the best-performing market in the region, rising 0.7 percent.
Egypt’s index edged down 0.04 percent although Egyptian Iron & Steel jumped 7.1 percent after reporting a slight reduction in its net loss for the first nine months of its fiscal year

Source: Arab News