Saudi index breaches 200-day average, all Gulf markets rise sharply

Saudi Arabia's stock market breached a major technical support  for the first time in three weeks on Wednesday, while Qatar's index touched its highest levels in over a year as all Gulf markets rose.

The main Saudi index was up 1 percent at 7,907.01 points, above its 200-day average of 7,902.35 points.

Middle East and North Africa markets are following the lead from the United States and other global emerging markets, Vrajesh Bhandari, portfolio manager at Al Mal in Dubai said.

"Being the last day of the month, we cannot rule out the possibility of some window dressing in specific markets," Bhandari added.

Saudi Advanced Industries rose 5.5 percent after posting an increase in its third-quarter profit. Middle East Paper also added 2.4 percent after reporting a gain its profit for the same period.

Saudi Kayan increased 5.2 percent, while Saudi Fisheries jumped 9.9 percent.

The Qatar index jumped 1.4 percent to 10,301 points, its highest level since April 2017. Heavyweight Qatar National Bank climbed 5.4 percent and telecommunications firm Ooredoo gained 3.6 percent.

The Dubai index added 1.5 percent, as market  heavyweights Arabtec and Emaar Properties gained 5.8 percent and 4.1 percent, respectively.

Emirates NBD rose 0.9 percent after posting a 16 percent rise in third-quarter profit, benefiting from a jump in net interest income and a drop in bad loan impairments.

Egypt's blue-chip index was up 0.7 percent, helped by a 3 percent gain in El Sewedy Electric and a 5.9 percent rise in Qatar National Bank Alahly.

Abu Qir Fertilizers inched up 1.7 percent after brokerage CI Capital raised its rating and target price on the stock.

Egyptian Chemical Industries also increased 1.4 percent after the brokerage raised its rating to 'overweight'.

Abu Dhabi's main index  was up 0.9 percent on the back of a nearly 15 percent surge in Ras Al Khaimah for White Cement and Construction Materials.

Union National Bank was up 1.9 percent after an update on a potential merger with Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank , which added 1.5 percent. Union National also posted a 7 percent rise in its third-quarter profit on Tuesday.