MUSCAT : The rally pushed the industrial sector index above the 7,700-point mark, adding 76 points to close at 7,772 points. The gains were driven by rises in shares of Al Safa Foods, Voltamp Energy, Oman Cables Industry, Gulf Mushroom Production and other industrial firms included in the index.

Despite the industrial uptick, the broader market experienced pressure from profit-taking in several leading stocks. The main index slipped eight points to close at 5,941 points, although it remains at its highest level in nine years. A total of 39 securities declined, compared to 36 that advanced, while 20 remained unchanged.

The financial sector index recorded the sharpest losses, falling 70 points amid declines in banking and investment stocks. Shares of Bank Muscat, Bank Sohar International, Oman Arab Bank, Bank Nizwa and Ominvest all closed lower. In contrast, the Sharia index edged up by two points to finish at 524 points.

Market capitalisation also retreated, with the value of listed securities falling by an estimated RO 55.9 million over the week to stand at RO 32.14 billion by the close of trading.

Trading activity, however, showed resilience. Total trading value rose 5.7 percent week-on-week to RO 210.8 million, supported by increased buying from local investment funds, companies and individual Omani investors. The number of executed transactions declined to 19,300 from more than 25,000 in the previous week.

Bank Muscat led activity with trades worth RO 54.6 million, accounting for 25.9 percent of total turnover, with its share closing at 338 baisa. Bank Sohar International followed with RO 37.7 million in trades, while OQ Basic Industries ranked third at RO 29.7 million. Together, the three stocks accounted for nearly 58 percent of total trading value.

The standout performer of the week was Majan Glass Company, listed on the Follow-Up Market, whose share price surged 81.8 percent from 13 baisa to 20 baisa. The stock saw 41 transactions involving 414,000 shares, following the company’s announcement of an acquisition offer by Al-Zumurrud National Company at 4 baisa per share. The offer is scheduled to run from January 4 to January 25 and requires acceptance by shareholders holding at least 75 percent of the company’s shares, in line with regulations issued by the Financial Services Authority. Majan Glass reported accumulated losses of RO 7.3 million as of the end of September, against capital of RO 4.2 million.

Other notable gainers included Raysut Cement, Oman United Insurance, Gulf Mushroom Production, Dhofar Food and Investment, and National Oman Engineering and Investment, with gains ranging between 5.7 percent and 7.5 percent.

On the downside, the financial services stock posted the steepest fall, dropping 13.7 percent to close at 75 baisa. Majan College shares declined 11.1 percent to 120 baisa, while the building materials industry stock fell 7.5 percent to 74 baisa.

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