Oil shipper Bahri boosted Saudi Arabia's stock market early on Tuesday while Egypt's market remained weak. The Saudi stock index added 0.9 percent as Bahri climbed 1.6 percent in unusually heavy trade. The company, which reported a 501 percent leap in third-quarter net profit last month, released details of its earnings late on Monday.
Petrochemical producer Saudi Basic Industries rose 1.4 percent and real estate developer Dar Al Arkan, which had dropped 2.3 percent on Monday after the cabinet announced plans for a tax on undeveloped land, rebounded 1.6 percent. Egypt's index slipped 0.6 percent as Orascom Telecom Media, which plunged 7.6 percent on Monday after EFG Hermes downgraded it and the company described difficulties at its North Korean unit, sank a further 3.2 percent to 0.60 Egyptian pounds.
EFG Hermes put the stock's fair value at 0.53 pounds. It was the most heavily traded share early on Tuesday. Mansoura Poultry jumped 9.4 percent after the government said it would stick to buying its poultry domestically, turning its back completely on international tenders, following pressure from local producers. But Egypt Poultry dropped 0.8 percent and shares in two other producers - Cairo Poultry and Ismalia Poultry - did not trade.