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EDITOR IN CHIEF- ABDULLAH BIN SALIM AL SHUEILI

MSM maintains positive momentum

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By Samuel Kutty — MUSCAT: Dec 10: In line with its peers elsewhere in the region, the Muscat Securities Market staged strong performance last week with rise in volume and augmenting turnover. While the benchmark MSM30 index rose to 5,667.58 points, the market capitalisation as at the end of the week stood at RO 6.505 billion. The index is still high by 80 points compared to its level in the last year, which closed at 5,406; thanks to the gains made in February, March, April and July at which the index gained 830 points.


The overall market capitalisation, excluding bonds, was at RO 8.690 billion.


According to analysts, the upbeat momentum is the result of recent Opec deal. “There has been across the board rise in the prices of shares on the local bourse. Investors are positive”, said an analyst at a local brokerage house.


A total of 19.449 million shares were traded on the last day of trading on Thursday amounting to aggregate turnover of RO 4.968 million.


GCC investors ended the day as net buyers to an extent of RO 218,000. Foreign and Omani investors emerged as net sellers to an extent of RO 11,000 and RO 217,000 respectively.


Financial Index closed trading higher by seven points, while the Services Index closed eight points higher than its previous close. But the Industrial Index ended in the red by 6 points.  MSM Shariah Index ended one point down for the day.


In the region, the United Arab Emirates rose strongly for a second straight day on Thursday while blue chips in Saudi Arabia and Egypt fell as investors kept booking profits.


Dubai’s index added 1.8 per cent with trading volume jumping 75 per cent from the previous day as mid- and large-sized shares attract foreign funds.


In Doha, the index rose 0.7 per cent in modest volume as half the shares in that index advanced.


Saudi Arabia’s index slipped 0.1 per cent with selling pressure intensifying in the final hour.


Volume shrank to the lowest level so far this week, suggesting that institutional funds, which had pushed the market higher in the last several weeks, were largely absent on Thursday.


In Cairo, the index lost 0.4 per cent; it fell 2.2 per cent this week in profit-taking after a spectacular rally following the November 3 float of the Egyptian pound.


Foreign investors remained net buyers of stocks by a modest margin on Thursday, however, exchange data showed.


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