Amman - Arab stock markets extended gains this week, buoyed by first-quarter results and surging oil prices, and financial analysts said Friday they were "cautiously optimistic" over the performance of regional bourses in the coming weeks.
"We are cautiously optimistic over the behaviour of regional bourses in the coming weeks, because speculation continues to be a key driving force for markets," Wajdi Makhamreh, Deputy CEO of the Amman-based Sanabel International Brokerage told Deutsche Presse- Agentur dpa.
"Stock markets continue to act as haven for investors who conduct trading on the basis of fundamentals and not for speculation purposes, given the huge amounts of liquidity seeking investment outlets," he said.
Amman - The Consultative Council of Jordan's influential Muslim Brotherhood movement has elected hard-line Hammam Saeed as new leader, reliable Islamic sources said Thursday.
Amman - The Arab Bank Group posted a 24.4-per-cent increase in net profits in the first quarter of the year, to 232.8 million dollars from 187.1 million dollars in the same period of 2007, the gro