MidEast shares were mixed, pressured early by weak purchasing managers' indexes around the region. However, a late rebound in oil pushing Saudi Arabia's stock market into the green.
Brent crude rose above $33 per barrel late in the day.
Earlier, data showed growth in Saudi Arabia's non-oil private sector fell to its lowest level in January since the survey began in August 2009, while growth in the United Arab Emirates dropped to a 46-month low, and activity in Egypt shrank for a fourth month.
In company news, Aramex said Q4 net profit dropped 36% to 57.6 million dirhams ($15.7 million), missing the estimate from SICO Bahrain for 97.6 million dirhams. Aramex attributed the drop to provisions for employee incentives, and said it would keep expanding through acquisitions.
Gulf International Services said it swung to a net loss of 20.9 million riyals ($5.6 million) in Q4, surprising QNB Financial Services, which had forecast a profit of 278.9 million riyals.
Saudi Arabia's main index edged up 0.9% to 5,927 points, Dubai firmed 0.2% to 2,976 points, Abu Dhabi slipped 0.8% to 4,055 points, Qatar dropped 1.5% to 9,487 points, Egypt rose 1% to 6,067 points, Oman slid 0.5% to 5,166 points, Kuwait dipped 0.3% to 5,119 points and Bahrain dropped 0.7% to 1,181 points.
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
