Kuwait, Qatar Shares Gain on Bernanke’s Comments; Oil Rises - Bloomberg.com

Kuwait and Qatar shares led gains among Gulf Arab markets as crude oil rose and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said the U.S. economic recovery remains intact.

Kuwait Finance and Investment Co., an investment banking and asset management company, jumped the most since March 11. Burgan Bank SAK, the Kuwaiti lender, increased the most in almost four weeks. Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Co., the Dubai-based phone and Internet company known as Du, rose for a second day. The Kuwait Stock Exchange Index gained 0.6 percent, the biggest intraday advance since May 12, to 6,705 at 10:50 a.m. in Kuwait City. The Bloomberg GCC 200 Index of 200 companies in the Gulf gained for a second day.

Bernanke is “stating the reality, and if investors are prepared to react to the statement accordingly then that’s a good sign,” said Paul Cooper, managing director at Sarasin- Alpen & Partners Ltd. in Dubai, which manages more than $500 million in the Middle East.