DUBAI, Aug 2 (Reuters) - Stock markets in the Gulf were mixed on Wednesday, with Saudi Arabia dragged down by a drop in crude oil prices while blue chips led gains the United Arab Emirates and Qatar higher.
Brent crude futures
LCOc1
lost 1.7 percent on Tuesday and traded below $52 a barrel for most of Wednesday. Consequently, 11 of the 14 petrochemical shares listed in Riyadh fell, including Saudi Basic Industries
2010.se
, which dropped 1.3 percent. The Riyadh index
.TASI
lost 0.4 percent.
Shares of Nama Chemicals
2210.SE
fell 0.5 percent after it reported a smaller net loss in the second quarter compared with last year.
Shares of real estate manager Taiba Holding
4090.SE
fell 0.1 percent after its second-quarter net profit fell 26.9 percent year-on-year to 54.4 million riyals ($14.51 million).
The company attributed the lower profits to the decrease in the operating revenues of hotels and resorts segment.
Dubai's index
.DFMGI
rose 0.3 percent to 3,661 points, its fourth back-to-back session of gains. Technically, the index is bullish, and analysts at NBAD Securities believe the market is poised to target its yearly high of 3,738 points in the coming weeks.
On Wednesday, shares of Emaar Properties
EMAR.DU
, which has yet to report earnings, added another 1.2 percent taking its four-day gains to 4.3 percent.
Dubai Investment
DINV.DU
which earlier this week had reported a 12.6 percent drop in its second quarter net profit attributable to shareholder, gained 2.5 percent.
In Abu Dhabi, shares of Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank
ADCB.AD
rose 1.9 percent. Analysts at Oman's Ubhar Capital believe that the bank is trading at an attractive price-to-book multiple - a measure commonly used for banks - versus its peers.
"The bank's valuation is primarily driven by its strong core operating performance which warrants sustained dividend payouts over the forecast period,"U-Capital said .
First Abu Dhabi Bank
FAB.AD
also rose, by 1.9 percent, helping take the index
.ADI
1.0 percent higher.
Qatar's index
.QSI
snapped a five-day loosing streak as 11 of the top 20 most valuable shares rose, while only seven declined. Liquefied natural gas shipper Qatar Gas Transport
QGTS.QA
was the top gainer amongst the large caps, jumping 4.0 percent.
Egypt's index
.EGX30
finished flat with the top six of the most valued real estate developers finishing mixed; Heliopolis for Housing and Development
HELI.CA
added 2.1 percent while Palm Hills Development
PHDC.CA
lost 1.6 percent.
Analysts at Cairo's Naeem Brokerage expect real estate developers to come under pressure in the second quarter and for the rest of the year because of higher interest rates, inflationary cost pressures and, a possible slowdown in demand.
HIGHLIGHTS
SAUDI ARABIA
* The index
.TASI
fell 0.4 percent to 7,081 points.
DUBAI
* The index
.DFMGI
added 0.3 percent to 3,661 points.
ABU DHABI
* The index
.ADI
gained 1.0 percent to 4,608 points.
QATAR
* The index
.QSI
rebounded 0.6 percent to 9,361 points.
EGYPT
* The index
.EGX30
edged up 0.07 percent to 13,405 points.
KUWAIT
* The index
.KWSE
edged down 0.3 percent to 6,824 points.
BAHRAIN
* The index
.BAX
fell 0.1 percent to 1,326 points.
OMAN
* The index
.MSI
added 0.5 percent 5,074 points.
($1 = 3.7501 riyals)
(editing by Larry King) ((celine.aswad@thomsonreuters.com)(+971 5 6224 7653)(Reuters Messaging: celine.aswad.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
