Mideast Stocks: Egypt bourse outperforms regional peers; #Qatar eases

Mideast Stocks: Egypt bourse outperforms regional peers; Qatar eases

Most stock markets in the Middle East ended higher on Thursday, with Egypt's blue-chip index outperforming the region, while the Qatari index was hit by Masraf Al Rayan. Egypt's blue-chip index jumped more than 3%, its biggest intraday gain in more than a month, with most stocks in positive territory.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ordered the government to set a program for the private sector's participation in state-owned assets, with a target of $10 billion annually for four years, private television channel Extra News reported on Tuesday.

Investor confidence was supported by the positive earnings and the government's efforts to reinvigorate the economy and the stock market, said Fadi Reyad, market analyst at CAPEX.com MENA.

Saudi Arabia's benchmark index finished 0.7% higher, with the kingdom's largest lender Saudi National Bank leaping 5.3%, extending gains from the previous session, when it reported a sharp rise in quarterly net profit. Among other gainers, oil giant Saudi Aramco climbed 1.2%, rising for a third consecutive session. Ratings agency Fitch this week revised its outlook for Aramco to "positive" from "stable", on higher oil revenues.

The Qatari index eased 0.2%, weighed down by a 5.2% slide in Masraf Al Rayan as the sharia-compliant lender traded ex-dividend. Masraf Al Rayan also reported a decline in first-quarter net profit.

However, the index's losses were limited by gains at Gulf International Services, which jumped 10%, as it swung to a profit in the first-quarter.

In Abu Dhabi, the index advanced 0.8%, boosted by a 0.8% gain in the country's largest lender First Abu Dhabi Bank , which reported its highest quarterly net profit helped by the sale of a majority stake in its payments business. Dubai's main share index closed 0.9% higher, with blue-chip developer Emaar Properties gaining 1.6%.