Financial analyst Youcef Bouhlaika called on investors to hold their stocks and not sell until the current period of market turbulence passes.

He noted that there were a host of local and international development that led to the Qatari index breaking below 10,000 points this week.

The current week of March witnessed a decline in the general index of the Qatar Stock Exchange to below 10,000 points, to drop to the level of 9,910 points, and to lose 826,510 points, compared to the end of last week’s trading by 7.7 percent.

He told Qatar News Agency (QNA) that the decline in the index coincided with six companies paying their dividend, which led to a large amount of profit-taking.

The financial market analyst stressed that the external repercussions weighed on the performance of the Qatar Stock Exchange, especially with the decline in the shares of the Swiss Credit Suisse Bank and the losses it caused to shareholders, in addition to the repercussions of the bankruptcy of the American Silicon Valley Bank on global markets, regional markets, and the decline in oil prices below $75 a barrel.

He added that he expects a rebound in Qatari stocks as companies begin announcing their Q1 earnings next month, adding that he expects they will likely be positive.

Source: Qatar News Agency