Gulf bourses book profits

Gulf bourses booked profits on Tuesday, performance of Saudi's market and to an extent the Qatar market had lifted regional bourses.

Property stocks led a rally, as UAE bourses advanced in early trade, recovering some of Monday's losses.

Emaar Properties climbed 4.9 per cent, courier firm Aramex surged 7.5 per cent and builder Arabtec added 5.9 per cent

Dubai's index rose 2.7 per cent to 1,413 points.

Abu Dhabi's index rose 1 per cent to 2,573 points.

Zain climbs in Kuwait

Kuwait's index ended slightly higher in a late rally, as a strong performance in the Saudi markets boosted regional sentiment.

The country's benchmark added 0.06 per cent ending at 6,138 points.

"Most markets are taking the lead from Saudi, as we are seeing a technical rebound after the fall during the crises," says Marwan Shurrab, vice president and chief trader at Gulfmena Alternative Investments.

Kuwait's telecom firm Zain climbed 1.5 per cent.

An official said on Monday that the Kuwaiti capital market laws related to takeovers will not apply to deals agreed before the rules are published this month, exempting Etisalat's $12 billion bid for a stake in rival telco Zain.

Qatar’s index climbs to highest

Qatar's index made its biggest advance in 15 months, ending at a one-week high as regional stocks track Saudi Arabia gains.

Doha's benchmark climbed 4.3 per cent to 8,012 points, its highest close since February 27 and biggest gain since December 2009.

Industries Qatar surged 6 per cent and Barwa Real Estate added 4.2 per cent.

Saudi Arabia's index is up 14.3 per cent this week, rallying from Wednesday's 22-month low as confirmation that state-linked funds had been buying local shares boosts fragile investor sentiment.

"The performance of Saudi's market and to an extent the Qatar market has lifted regional bourses," says Marwan Shurrab, vice president and chief trader at Gulfmena Alternative Investments. "However, volumes are still low in these markets, so traders are looking for short-term investments."

Sabic gains in Saudi

Saudi stocks surged, with the benchmark rallying for a fourth day, as state-linked are thought to be buying into the market.

The index climbed 2.1 per cent ending at 6,074 points.

"The Saudi market was oversold and a bounce was expected," says Saad Al-Chalabi, a technical analyst for institutional equities at Al Ramz Securities in Abu Dhabi.

"We have been seeing some government intervention, which is one of the reasons for the rise."

Heavyweight Saudi Basic Industries Corp climbed 3.6 per cent and Al-Rajhi Bank gained 4.5 per cent.