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Saudi leads Gulf bourses lower on weak earnings, Dubai gains

Agencies . Doha
03 Feb 2023 00:00:00 | Update: 03 Feb 2023 17:52:28
Saudi leads Gulf bourses lower on weak earnings, Dubai gains

Most stock exchanges in the Gulf fell in early trade on Thursday following a slew of corporate earnings that fell short of expectations, with the Saudi main share index dragged down by Alinma Bank (1150.SE).

Saudi Arabia’s benchmark stock index (.TASI) slipped 0.2%, pressured by losses in banking and real estate sector stocks.

Shares of Alinma Bank fell 2.2% after the bank reported 32.8% growth in annual net profit to 3.60 billion riyals ($959.3 million) that missed analysts’ estimate of 3.72 billion riyals.

Central banks in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain lifted their key interest rates by 25 basis points on Wednesday, following the Federal Reserve’s hike of the same size, as their currencies are pegged to the dollar.

However, Qatar’s central bank said on Wednesday it was keeping its interest rates unchanged. CBQ typically follows the Fed’s moves as the Qatari riyal is also pegged to the dollar.

The Qatari main share index (.QSI) slipped 0.5%, extending losses for a fourth straight session. Banking sector stocks drove losses in the index with Masraf Al Rayan (MARK.QA) declining 2.6%, while Islamic lender Qatar Islamic Bank (QISB.QA) was down 1%.

However, National Marine Dredging Company (NMDC.AD) rose 1.7% after the firm posted a 30% increase in annual net profit to 1.30 billion dirhams ($353.9 million).

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