JEDDAH — Gulf bourses were mostly lower Sunday with political tension weighing on Kuwait, while Saudi Arabia's measure gained in thin trade. Saudi Arabia bucked the regional trend, with the stock benchmark Tadawul All Share Index registering an increase of 0.19 percent, up for a third straight session, to close at 6,813.62 points. However, trading volumes were low as investors stayed cautious. The insurance sector rose 2.4 percent, accounting for a third of all trading volume on the bourse. Short-term retail investors often target insurance stocks because they are plays on domestic demand, avoiding petrochemical and banking shares which are more affected by global trends. “Right now it's a wait and see period - there's more cautious behaviour from investors right now because of global events like the US elections,” said Muhammad Faisal Potrik, research analyst at Riyad Capital. “We could see some improvement since the market did get bogged down. Petchem prices have improved on average since the last quarter and Q4 is likely to be better.” Petrochemical stocks edged higher, with Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC), the Gulf's largest listed company, adding 0.3 percent. Elsewhere, Kuwait's index slumped to a new eight-year closing low ahead of a major demonstration planned by the opposition later in the day. The market finished 0.1 percent lower. In the United Arab Emirates, Abu Dhabi's measure dipped 0.2 percent, easing away from a 15-month high. Dubai's benchmark closed 0.3 percent lower, trading within a 20-point range since last Monday. In Qatar, the bourse slipped from its six-week high as investors booked recent gains, with Industries Qatar the main drag. Industries Qatar fell 2.4 percent to 150.9 riyals, down from Thursday's four-year high suggesting it has not cleanly broken major technical resistance at the January 2011 intra-day high of 154.50. Doha's index ended 0.5 percent lower at 8,565 points in its largest one-day decline since Sept. 26. — SG/Reuters
