Stock Market Continues Gains with 62.6 Million KD in Liquidity

The Kuwait Stock Exchange recorded gains for the second consecutive session, driven by sustained buying interest focused primarily on leading stocks, as well as several small and mid-cap stocks, which positively reflected on the market indices.

The rise in the local bourse and regional markets followed the results of the US midterm elections, which bolstered investor optimism amid readings suggesting the outcomes could undermine prospects of a military confrontation between the United States and Iran and reduce the likelihood of escalation in the region.

While the election results do not signal an end to the tensions plaguing the region for some time or completely rule out a war scenario, they may help mitigate those tensions, thereby calming geopolitical fears and supporting the markets.

The Gulf region saw positive performance across most of its markets, led by the Dubai market, which rose by approximately 4 percent, or 229.88 points, followed by the Qatar market, which gained about 2.8 percent, adding roughly 270.1 points.

The TASI index rose by 1.65 percent, equivalent to 162.76 points, while the Muscat Securities Market index increased by 0.54 percent, or 38.69 points. The Bahrain market also saw a slight rise of about 0.14 percent, or 2.54 points, whereas the Abu Dhabi market experienced a limited decline of approximately 0.02 percent.

Returning to the Kuwaiti market, trading liquidity did not keep pace with the rate of index gains, declining slightly by 5.6 percent to reach 62.6 million dinars, compared to 66.4 million in Tuesday’s session.

The First Market continued to capture the largest share of this liquidity at 75 percent, while the Main Market accounted for the remaining 25 percent.

The session saw positive performance for many stocks, led by the Al-Oula Fuel stock listed on the First Market, which rose by nearly 4 percent. Shares of Burkan, Aayan, STC, and Kuwait Investment also posted gains exceeding 2 percent, with some approaching a 3 percent increase.

The Hotels stock topped the list of most-gaining stocks after rising by more than 8 percent, followed by the Madar stock, which climbed by nearly 8 percent, along with several other stocks that recorded varying increases during the session.

A total of 131 shares were traded, with 79 rising, 30 falling, and prices remaining stable for 22 shares. Weighted indices rose for nine sectors in the market, led by the Energy sector by 2.05 percent and Consumer Services by 1.15 percent. Indices for three sectors declined: Basic Materials, Consumer Goods, and Telecommunications, by 0.62, 0.20, and 0.06 percent, respectively, while prices for the Utilities sector remained stable.

In terms of index details, the General Market Index rose by approximately 47.33 points, or 0.56 percent, reaching 8,477 points, with 219.5 million shares traded through 15,858 transactions.

The First Market Index also gained approximately 47.34 points, or 0.53 percent, reaching 8,919 points, with liquidity valued at 46.7 million dinars and volumes of 120.1 million shares executed through 8,423 transactions.

The Main Index rose by 58.91 points, or 0.70 percent, closing at 8,471 points, with a traded value of 15.9 million dinars and a trading volume of 99.4 million shares conducted through 7,435 transactions.

As a result, the bourse’s market capitalization gained approximately 283.8 million dinars, reaching 50.91 billion dinars, an increase of 0.56 percent compared to the 50.63 billion recorded during Tuesday’s session.

In terms of value, the most actively traded stocks were Bitak, which ranked first with a trading value of 7.2 million dinars, reaching a price of 752 fils, followed by Al-Watani with 5.26 million dinars, reaching a price of 862 fils, then Watania with 3.5 million dinars, closing at 150 fils, Al-Mushtraka with 2.1 million dinars, reaching a price of 783 fils, and fifth was Makhazen with 2.1 million dinars, reaching a price of 149 fils.

At the top of the list of the most rising stocks was the Hotels stock, up by 8.20 percent, with 13,500 shares traded, reaching a price of 198 fils, followed by Madar by 7.80 percent, with 899,200 shares traded, reaching a price of 105 fils, then Al-Ula by 6.67 percent, with 11.7 million shares traded, reaching a price of 112 fils, and Mubadara by 6.40 percent, with 1.7 million shares traded, reaching a price of 133 fils, and fifth was Asico by 5.02 percent, with 1.27 million shares traded, reaching a price of 481 fils.

On the other hand, the Asas stock recorded a decline of 4.69 percent, leading the list of the most declining stocks, with 3,500 shares traded, reaching a price of 183 fils, followed by Al-Safwa by 4.03 percent, with 12.6 million shares traded, dropping to a price of 119 fils, then Al-Manar by 3.75 percent, with 552,500 shares traded, closing at 100.1 fils, and Ameer by 2.96 percent, with 170,100 shares traded, dropping to a price of 88.6 fils, and fifth was Investments by 2.85 percent, with approximately 4.49 million shares traded, closing at a price of 239 fils.