Gulf funds’ buying interests lift QSE more than 2%; banks and telecom outperform

Gulf funds’ buying interests lift QSE more than 2%; banks and telecom outperform

A higher than average demand for the banks and telecom scrips led the Qatar Stock Exchange (QSE) gain more than 2% this week. The Gulf funds were seen net buyers as the 20-stock Qatar Index shot up 2.24% this week which saw Qatar Islamic Bank report net profit of QR1.96bn in the first half (H1) of 2023. About 66% of the traded constituents extended gains to investors this week which saw Barwa Real Estate's fully-owned subsidiary Lusail Golf Development Company reach a pact to sell two land plots in the Lusail area for QR6.36bn. The foreign institutions were seen net buyers this week which saw Commercial Bank report H1 net profit of QR1.55bn. The Islamic index was seen gaining slower than the other indices this week which saw Ahlibank Qatar register net profit of QR359.74mn in H1-2023. The Arab retail investors were seen bullish this week which saw Woqod report net profit of QR440.18mn in the first six months of this year. However, the local retail investors turned net profit takers in the main market this week which saw Qatar's ports see a 32% year-on-year increase in container transport volume in January-June 2023. The domestic institutions were also net sellers