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- Title: VARIOUS: Oil-rich Gulf joins global markets hit by significant falls
- Date: 8th October 2008
- Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) SAUDI STOCK DEALER, FAHAD ABU MOHAMMED, SAYING: "As you can see the situation is very tragic. All the shares are now below the minimum limits. God help those who put all their money in the market. We hope that the concerned parties will intervene quickly to put a stop to this decline and save what is left of the shares." MEN SITTING ON LEATHER SOFAS COMPUTER SCREENS SHOWING STOCK INFORMATION MAN SITTING ON SOFA LOOKING AT PRICES MAN SITTING AT DESKTOP COMPUTER / EMPTY DESK MEN WATCHING BUSINESS NEWS ON TELEVISION MEN WATCHING TELEVISION SCREENS STOCK BROKERS ANSWERING PHONES CLOSE OF HAND TYPING ON KEYBOARD MAN WORKING AT DESK CLOSE OF SCREEN DISPLAYING FINANCIAL NEWS BROKERS ON PHONES BROKER TALKING ON PHONE WHILST LOOKING AT MONITOR CLOSE OF SCREEN SHOWING SHARE PRICES
- Embargoed: 23rd October 2008 13:00
- Keywords:
- Topics: International Relations,Economic News
- Reuters ID: LVA1K4P2H1WKGCY3WY992PUOUHNB
- Story Text: Prices in Gulf stock markets are sent tumbling as the global financial crisis hits the oil-rich region.
Gulf stock markets extended their decline on Wednesday (October 8) as global financial turmoil torpedoed investor confidence.
The Qatar index .QSI fell almost 9 percent, Oman's main index .MSI slumped 7.21 percent while both the Saudi .TASI and Dubai .DFMGI indices shed more than 8 percent.
The Bahrain index .BAX edged down 2.7 percent.
Markets have tumbled around the world as the upheaval that began on Wall Street spreads, effectively shutting down interbank and other loan markets.
Gulf real estate and banking stocks led the slide, as investors worried that the economies of the world's top oil-exporting region are not shielded from the global turmoil, despite official assurances to the contrary.
Saudi Stock dealer, Fahad Abu Mohammed, said the situation was now serious.
"As you can see the situation is very tragic. All the shares are now below the minimum limits. God help those who put all their money in the market. We hope that the concerned parties will intervene quickly to put a stop to this decline and save what is left of the shares," he said.
Whilst in Dubai, Radi Ashour, the financial manager of the Al Sharhan Stock Centre said the plunge in share prices is the worst for a while.
"The index here has reached very low levels, approximately 3,000 points. At the beginning of the year, we were at 6,000, and now we're approximately at 3,000. Today was probably the worst day. The index has gone down by at least 9.7 percent which is a high percentage that we haven't seen in a very long time," Ashour said.
Stock Broker, Mohammed Al-Kiswani agreed.
''The gulf has been affected by the crisis in general, it's not only the Emirates but the gulf in general. Countries like Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait, all these Gulf countries are passing through the same crisis because the effect of big banks selling not only has an impact in the Emirates but in all the Gulf countries because those banks have huge financial portfolios, not only in the Emirates but in all the Gulf states, even in Asia and Europe," he said.
"God willing, that after this sharp decline. It will be followed by a rise and an improvement in prices. There's no doubt that we're going through a period of anxiety and monitoring amongst investors," he added.
Gulf central bankers have tried to reassure investors about the financial system. Officials have also indicated they stood ready to act to inject liquidity in the market, with Saudi Arabia being the latest to outline efforts to bolster markets.
Six Saudi banks launched a concerted effort to restore confidence on Tuesday (October 7), saying they had no direct exposure to toxic mortgages as shares plunged on fears about the impact of the global financial crisis. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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