DUBAI (Zawya Dow Jones)--The Gulf markets are seen trading mostly flat Wednesday as investors shy away from holding positions over a long religious holiday amid mixed global market sentiment, traders said.
"Investors have stayed well away now for a while, not wishing to hold positions of significance with the holiday period approaching," a Saudi-based trader said.
Asian stocks are trading mixed Wednesday, after a subdued performance by U.S. equities overnight.
U.A.E.: Dubai's benchmark stock index ended -1.9% at 2070.89 Tuesday. Abu Dhabi's market slipped 0.5% to 2893.87.
Volumes remained low ahead of the Eid holidays.
The markets have been on a rollercoaster ride this week as investors track mixed economic recovery signals, said a trader.
He noted weaker Asia and Europe stocks, a stronger U.S. dollar, and lower crude prices, all impacting sentiment Tuesday.
Arabtec Holding, the U.A.E.'s largest construction firm by market value, expects its performance next year to match 2009's effort at best, the company's chief financial officer said Tuesday.
Union Properties Tuesday said it expects fourth-quarter operating profit to be better than a year earlier, but warns that it may be forced to take provisions on contracting activities that could impact its bottom line.
Aabar Investments said late Wednesday it has entered into a $1.62 billion club loan agreement with a number of international and local lenders.
SAUDI ARABIA: The Tadawul benchmark index closed +0.2% at 6303.81 Tuesday.
"Volumes remain extremely thin, roughly half of the year-to-date average daily traded - the expectation locally though is that activity should pick up post Eid, with investors starting to position themselves for 2010," a Saudi-based trader said.
Emaar The Economic City, or EEC, said Tuesday it has canceled a SAR650 million contract it signed last year with City Cool Co. to build, own and operate two cooling stations at the residential and commercial buildings within Bay La Sun Village on the Red Sea.
KUWAIT: The benchmark stock price index rose 1.1% to 6869.10 Tuesday.
Bellwether Zain gained 4.2% to KWD1 Tuesday. Nomura upgraded Zain to neutral from reduce rating, saying it should produce a better financial performance in 2010, supported by an improved economic position and improving currency trends.
Kuwait's Kharafi Group, which is leading a consortium of investors selling a 46% stake in Zain, has appointed BNP Paribas SA as advisor to the deal, which could be worth a potential $13.7 billion, a Kharafi Group official said Tuesday.
Agility closed up 2.4% at KWD0.87 Tuesday. Its shares fell 5.6% Monday, after losing 17% in the previous four sessions on news that the U.S. government has filed a criminal indictment against the company.
QATAR: Doha's market closed -1.5% at 7150.52 Tuesday, after rising 1.2% Monday.
Resistance is seen at 7300, said Shuaa Capital, noting this level represents an important test for buyers and a break above it could further extend the bounce and possibly push the index to its October high around 7650.
"That being said, we still believe that the move is unlikely to travel far from current levels and that traders should use the bounce as an opportunity to lighten up on their exposures," Shuaa added.
BAHRAIN: The benchmark index rose 0.1% to 1449.05 Tuesday, supported by shares of investment firms.
OMAN: The Muscat market closed flat at 6393.67 Tuesday. Bank stocks finished lower while industrials were up.
EGYPT: The EGX 30 index closed +0.6% at 6316.61 Tuesday.
Al Ezz Steel Rebars Co., Egypt's largest producer of steel, Tuesday reported a nine-month net profit of EGP29 million compared with EGP1.5 billion in the same period last year.
Bellwether Orascom Construction rose 5.8% to EGP242.73. OCI was up 3% Monday, after it posted a 41% slide in third-quarter net profit, but still beat analyst expectations.
SYRIA: Damascus Securities Exchange, or DSE, trade sessions take place on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays.
NEWS FROM AROUND THE GULF: Qatar will propose the Gulf Cooperation Council, or GCC, creates a regional development bank, similar to that set up in Europe, when the bloc meets next month in Kuwait, the group's secretary-general told Al Arabiya television Tuesday.
Abu Dhabi plans to build the largest sports stadium in the United Arab Emirates as it seeks to invest $100 billion on new infrastructure to attract visitors.
Sovereign wealth funds from Kuwait, Qatar and the U.A.E. are poised to pour billions of dollars into the markets of Brazil, Russia, India and China next year as they seek to tap into the BRIC countries explosive economic growth, a senior executive at Credit Suisse said.
Saudi Arabia will remove a two-year-old subsidy on rice imports November 29 in an attempt to trim the kingdom's spending on food imports, traders said Tuesday.
Qatar plans to spend as much as $1 billion on a solar-powered water desalination plant that will support the gas-rich Persian Gulf state's agricultural industry, the chairman of a recently formed government body said.
Oman will boost government spending by 9% to OMR7.18 billion in 2010 as oil prices increase, the country's economy minister Ahmad bin Abdul-Nabi Mekki said Tuesday.
Kuwait could switch the pricing of its crude sold to U.S. customers to the Argus Sour Crude Index, or ASCI, from Platt's West Texas Intermediate, or WTI, following in the footsteps of Saudi Arabia, Kuwaiti oil officials said.
Bahrain's Mumtalakat Holding Co., which owns Gulf Air, may sell a stake in the national carrier and is eyeing other investments globally, the head of the Gulf state's investment arm said.
-By Nikhil Lohade, Dow Jones Newswires, +9714 364 4963, nikhil.lohade@dowjones.com
Copyright (c) 2009 Dow Jones & Co.
Article Source:wsj.com
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