Oil prices weakened on most of the Gulf stock markets, and pushed them down today, while Qatar and Dubai stock markets retreated under the pressure of leading shares losses of banks,
With Qatar National Bank, the largest bank in the Middle East, retreating 5.2%, the Qatar Stock Exchange index fell 1.3%, recording its biggest loss during the session since June 2017, and it is worth noting that the stock has achieved gains of more than 65% last year, after the bank announced plans to raise the maximum foreign ownership in its shares to 49% from 25%, and was one of the best performing stock market indices in the world in 2018.
The leading shares of Qatar Industries fell 2.2%, ahead of the announcement of the company producing petrochemicals for the full year financial results later today.In the same context, but Saudi Arabia, the main index of the Saudi market fell 0.4%, with Al-Rajhi Bank falling 0.8%, while the share of the Saudi Basic Industries Corporation SABIC fell 0.7%.
The net purchases of foreign investors from Saudi stocks in the first week of February were about 920.7 million riyals, equivalent to $ 245.51 million, according to stock exchange data.
Al-Yamamah Steel Industries shares declined 4.1%, after the company recorded a net loss of 30.2 million riyals in the first quarter of its fiscal year, compared to a profit of 6.7 million riyals a year ago.