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Bank shares boost Qatar market
May 9, 2011--The QE Index surged 1.02% to reach 8,544.18 points.
Qatar Islamic Bank jumped two percent, closing at QR80.80. Al Khalij Commercial Bank added 0.84%, finishing at QR17.99. Only four shares declined, among them Cinema which lost the most (down nine percent at QR40.00.
Kuwait Stock Exchange gains insignificantly
May 9, 2011--The KSE continues to trade sideways as the KSE Market ended up 0.04% at 6,508.6 points. First Dubai for Real Estate Development posted the largest gain (seven percent higher at KD0.0305).
Telcom provider Zain weighed on the market (off 1.69% at KD1.160). Year-to-date, the KSE lost 6.43%, the second worst performance in the GCC behind the market in Muscat.
Bahrain Bourse dips despite end of martial law announcement
May 9, 2011-The Bahrain All Share Index in Manama declined 0.40%, closing at 1,384.98 points as no listed share posted a profit.
. On Sunday, Bahrain's King Hamad al-Chalifa announced that the martial law, which was imposed on March 12 after months of demonstrations and civil unrest, will be lifted on June 1st. Ithmaar Bank plummeted 5.56% to $0.085. Ahli United Bank closed unchanged at $0.74.
DGCX crosses Open Interest (OI) milestone of 10,000 lots
May 9, 2011--In a significant milestone, DGCX has crossed open interest (OI) of 10,000 lots for its contracts on May 5, 2011. The value of the open interest is US$ 500 million.
Open interest is the total number of outstanding futures contracts held by market participants and is regarded as a leading performance indicator in the industry. It also represents the health of a Market and trust of market participants in the credibility of DGCX's clearing house, the DCCC. The milestone is a significant testament of the rapidly growing confidence of commercial parties and investors in trading and holding positions in DGCX precious metals, energy and currency products.
For more information: www.dgcx.ae
DGCX Weekly Market Comentary -May 8, 2011
May 8, 2011--Economic Data Overview
In the week of May 9, the first wave of U.S. economic data for the start of Q2 is due, with retail sales numbers and some of the inflation indicators. There will also be an early take on consumer confidence for the month of May. The pace also remains brisk for the release of first quarter earnings reports.
Just as the April employment reports have set the tone for the labour market in the second quarter, the April numbers on retail sales on Thursday will influence the outlook for consumer spending. Better weather with the arrival of spring and the late timing of the Easter holiday may have helped move seasonal merchandise. Rising prices for gasoline will add to the upward momentum to the service station component.
Decent sales volume of motor vehicles combined with firmer prices should also contribute to higher sales at auto dealers. The inflation data will continue to feel the impact of higher oil prices, although increases in food costs appear to be moderating somewhat. The Import Price Index on Tuesday will get another push higher from petroleum costs, although less than in the March report. The PPI on Thursday is being released at the same time as the retail sales report. It will probably be overshadowed, but it is expected to show that some pipeline pressures from the intermediate and crude processing stages are passing through into finished goods. The CPI is due on Friday and will get the most attention of the three reports on inflation. Seasonal adjustment factors expect increases in gasoline prices to start as summer approaches, but it probably will not be on par with the actual rise experienced in April. Food price increases should be more moderate. At the core, there are signs of faster gains in medical care and motor vehicles, as well as in jewellery. The two earliest of the May measures of consumer ...
DGCX April Volumes Increase 111% Year-on-Year to Record 227,421 Contracts
May 8, 2011- DGCX Gold Futures rise 49% year-on-year to reach 46,295 contracts
Currency futures volumes increase 149% year-on-year to reach 168,132 contracts
Year-to-date volumes on the Exchange climb 51% to aggregate 910,913 contracts
April volumes on DGCX recorded a 111% year-on-year increase to reach 227,421 contracts valued at $11.4 billion. Year-to-date volumes on the Exchange climbed by 51% to aggregate 910,913 contracts while year-to-date average daily volumes also rose 51% to touch 10,975 contracts.
For more information: www.dgcx.ae
Estimating a Small Open-Economy Model for Egypt: Spillovers, Inflation Dynamics, and Implications for Monetary Policy -IMF Working Paper
May 6, 2011--Summary: This paper estimates a small open economy model for Egypt to analyze inflation, output dynamics and monetary policy during 2005-2010. The interest rate channel is found to be relatively weak in Egypt, complicating the use of interest rates as the immediate target of monetary policy.
However, the paper also finds a significant level of persistence in the policy rate, making monetary policy pro-cyclical. More active use of interest rate policy, measures to improve domestic debt markets and a gradual move towards inflation targeting can help support a successful disinflation strategy for Egypt.
Aramex shares rise on first quarter results
May 5, 2011--The Dubai Financial Market (DFM) Index closed 0.68% lower at 1,607.29 points.
Logistics specialist Aramex gained 1.09% to reach Dhs1.86. Earlier in the day, Aramex reported a net rpofit for the first quarter attributable to equity holders of the parent of Dhs49.82m, up from Dhs47.5m in Q1 2010. Emaar shares dipped 1.54% to Dhs3.19. Some 82.59m stocks valued at Dhs123.45m changed hands.
Qatar bourse dips for the fifth day straight
May 5, 2011--The QE Index ended 0.48% lower at 8,452.38 points with all sector indexes landing in the red. Qatar National Bank declined one percent to QR139.00. Zad Holding Co. bucked the trend, gaining 5.08% to reach QR60.00.
Earlier in the day, the Qatar Exchange announced Qatar Exchange (QE) announced that the right issues' shares of Zad Holding Company have been credited to the shareholders' accounts at the rate of 30% of the company's capital. "The company's share capital is now QR130,810,680 distributed among 13,081,068 shares. In light of the above, shareholders can trade their shares beginning Sunday, May 08, 2011," the statement says.
Tamweel shares to resume trading on May 10
May 5, 2011--Tamweel PJSC, the UAE Islamic home finance provider, announced today that its shares will resume trading on the Dubai Financial Market (DFM) on May 10, 2011, subsequent to approval from the Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA).
For the first quarter of 2011, Tamweel reported a net profit of AED 27 million, compared to Dhs5m in the same period last year. In February, Tamweel reported an annual profit of AED 26 million for year 2010, bouncing back from an annual net loss of Dhs54m in 2009. Dubai Islamic Bank owns a 57.7% share in Tamweel, whose long-time CEO Wasim Saifi resigned on November 11 2010. He was succeeded by Acting CEO Varun Sood. The Islamic home financing company was hit hard by the real estate crash due to the global financial crisis. Commenting on the resumption of share trading, Abdulla Ali Al Hamli, Chairman of Tamweel, said: "The resumption of share trading is a very positive sign of Tamweel's long-term sustainable growth outlook. We would like to thank the Government of Dubai, under the guidance of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and our shareholders and other stakeholders for their patience and continued support of Tamweel. The company now looks forward with confidence to delivering value to its shareholders through its strong, proven business model."
