Egyptian shares advance after having paused on Wednesday from a seven-day winning streak triggered by euphoria over the successful election and succession to power of the country's first civilian ruler in six decades. Egypt's main index rises 0.5 percent to 4,940 points. On Wednesday it fell 1.4 percent from a seven-week high.
Hashem Ghoneim of Pyramids Capital says foreign investors, who had been net sellers for weeks, had begun buying again in the last two or three days after optimism spread that the election of Mohamed Mursi would bring back to Egypt a period of stability and growth.
"Hopefully we'll start seeing positive news coming out of the government," Ghoneim says. "The market is cheap. It is only the politics that people are waiting for to improve." Real estate companies gain, with Palms Hills climbing 2.9 percent, Talaat Moustafa 1.9 percent, and Egyptian Resorts 1.7 percent.
Egypt's biggest builder, Orascom Construction Industries, gains 1.2 percent. Dubai's bourse mounts a late-session rally to end higher for a fourth day in five as investor risk appetite increases, while Qatar National Bank lifts Doha's index after the lender reported second-quarter profit growth.
Dubai's index climbs 1 percent to finish at 1,505 points, its highest close since May 10. Emaar Properties advances 1.7 percent, Dubai Islamic Bank climbs 1.6 percent and mortgage lender Tamweel adds 2.4 percent. The market rallied on Tuesday after Saudi Arabia approved a long-awaited mortgage law, with investors buying into real estate stocks in the kingdom as well as Dubai's Emaar. The developer is a shareholder in Saudi firm Emaar Economic City.
Abu Dhabi's bourse ends near-flat at 2,472 points. In Doha, Qatar National Bank climbs 0.9 percent. Qatar's largest listed lender made a quarterly net profit of 2.1 billion riyals ($576.7 million), up from 1.8 billion riyals in the year-earlier period, according to Reuters calculations. Four analysts polled by Reuters expected a quarterly profit of 2.15 billion riyals. Doha's benchmark closes 0.2 percent higher at 8,267 points, trimming year-to-date losses to 5.8 percent.
In Oman, the index ends 0.4 percent higher at 5,577 points, up from Wednesday's seven-month low, as investors buy financial stocks. National Bank of Oman is the main support, rising 2.5 percent. HSBC Oman gains 1.3 percent and Bank Muscat climbs 0.9 percent. Doha's bourse edges up as lender Qatar National Bank rises after posting a growth in second-quarter earnings, while UAE markets trade near-flat in slow trade.
Shares in the lender are up 1.1 percent. Its second-quarter net profit rose to 2.1 billion riyals ($576.7 million) from 1.8 billion riyals in the year-earlier period, according to Reuters calculations. Four analysts polled by Reuters expected a quarterly profit of 2.15 billion riyals. Doha's benchmark edges up 0.1 percent to 8,263 points, trimming year-to-date losses to 5.9 percent. Abu Dhabi's market trades near-flat. Elsewhere, Kuwait's index declines 0.3 percent to 5,842 points. Oman's bourse ticks up 0.3 percent to 5,576 points.