By: Mahmoud Gamal
Mubasher: The GCC stock markets are likely to be gripped by five factors during Wednesday’s and Thursday’s trading sessions, analysts told Mubasher.
These factors include the US President’s announcements regarding oil prices and sanctions on Iran, in addition to the anticipated hikes in the US Federal Reserve's interest rates and the expected mergers of listed-banks in the GCC region.
By the end of Tuesday’s trading session, the GCC markets resumed the bullish trend, topped by the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul), which soared 1.8% near 8,000 points.
Investor appetite
Tadawul has benefited from the recent hikes in oil prices that bolstered investor appetite to capture stocks, mainly the petrochemical sector’s stocks, senior financial analyst at Menacorp Financial Services Issam Kassabieh said.
Oil prices hit record highs due to the growing concerns over supplies after the US sanctions on Iranian oil exports, that would come into force as of 4 November.
Some of the GCC markets could be cautious about their investors' performance in the coming trading sessions amid the US pressure on the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to raise output, which will make oil hits low levels, Kassabieh highlighted.
Federal decision
For his part, CEO of NamaaZone Iyad Aref said that conflicts between the US and the oil producer group will grip trends of the GCC equity markets.
On the other hand, the negative impacts, such as the escalating US-China trade war, have weighed on the performance of the GCC markets, particularly the UAE bourses, Aref stressed.
Interest rates in the region are likely to rise following the expected hike in the Fed's benchmark overnight lending rate on Thursday, which will consequently affect the stocks, he indicated.
He noted that the banking sector’s stocks are likely to gain momentum and purchases in case the Fed's interest-rate hike is approved, the CEO added.
Most of the GCC markets are anticipating listed-firms’ disclosures of financial results for the third quarter of this year, which are forecast to set stocks’ trend, Aref said.
Translated by: Mai Ezz El-Din
