By Ateeq Shariff
May 9 (Reuters) - Stock markets in the Gulf ended mixed
on Tuesday, with Aramco's quarterly earnings lifting the Saudi
index, while lower oil prices weighed on the sentiment.
Saudi Arabia's benchmark index rose 0.4%, buoyed by
a 3.2% jump in oil behemoth Saudi Aramco after its
first-quarter earnings beat market expectations, despite falling
19% over last year.
Net profit was 3.75% higher than in the fourth quarter, and
the company said it would pay $19.5 billion in dividends for the
first quarter.
Aramco was looking at introducing performance-linked
dividends, in addition to its base distribution, CEO Amin Nasser
said in a statement.
Among other gainers, National Shipping Company of Saudi
Arabia advanced 2.6%, after reporting a steep rise in
its quarterly profit.
Dubai's main share index fell 0.3%, hit by a 1.8%
fall in Emirates Central Cooling Systems Corporation , while Aramex slid 4.6% as the logistics
firm is slated to report its first-quarter earnings.
In Abu Dhabi, the index finished flat.
The Abu Dhabi bourse saw more downward pressures with some
companies missing earnings estimates and oil prices returning to
the downside, said Farah Mourad, senior market analyst at XTB
MENA.
Oil prices — a key catalyst for the Gulf's financial markets
— fell, relinquishing some of the strong gains of the previous
two sessions with the market cautious ahead of U.S. inflation
figures, which will be key to the Federal Reserve's next
interest rate decision.
The Qatari index reversed early losses to close 0.3%
higher, with Islamic lender Masraf Al Rayan advancing
3.4%.
Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index declined
1.8%, as most of its constituents were in the negative
territory, including top lender Commercial International Bank , which was down 2.1%.
According to Mourad, the Egyptian bourse continued to see a
strong selling trend from international investors as sentiment
remains cautious.
"At the same time, local investors continue to support the
market but the main index could find some resistance near its
last peak."
SAUDI ARABIA rose 0.4% to 11,305
ABU DHABI was flat at 9,689
DUBAI down 0.3% to 3,571
QATAR gained 0.3% to 10,747
EGYPT lost 1.8% to 17,326
BAHRAIN added 0.5% to 1,923
OMAN eased 0.2% to 4,673
KUWAIT dropped 0.8% to 7,664
(Reporting by Ateeq Shariff in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi
Majumdar)
