STOCKS NEWS MIDEAST-Egypt lifts from 4-mth low on IMF loan hopes

0941 GMT - Egypt's bourse eases away from a four-month low as bargain hunters return on renewed hopes of a much-needed $4.8 billion loan deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The country's planning minister said on Thursday the government expects to reach a final agreement on the loan within two weeks, the state news agency MENA reported. Talks had stalled in recent months over economic reforms required to seal the deal. Political uncertainty and violent social unrest also delayed negotiations. Cairo must convince the global lender it is serious about reforms aimed at boosting growth and curbing an unaffordable budget deficit. Large-caps Commercial International Bank and Orascom Construction Industries rise 2.7 percent and 1.7 percent. Non-Egyptian Arabs are net buyers, while Egyptians are net sellers on the bourse. The main benchmark climbs 0.8 percent to 4,968 points. Elsewhere, Oman's bourse rises in heavy foreign investor buying ahead of first-quarter earnings. The index ends 0.9 percent higher at 6,111 points, up for a third session. "Speculation on Q1 is driving the market - a huge participation from foreign investors is boosting confidence in the market," says Adel Nasr, United Securities' brokerage manager. "The rally will continue for a while on expectations of strong results from the investment and banking sectors." Oman International Development and Investment jumps 6.4 percent on renewed hopes its subsidiary, Oman Arab Bank, will be publicly listed, traders say. Bank Muscat climbs 1 percent and Ahli Bank gains 0.6 percent. In Kuwait, the benchmark ticks up 0.04 percent to finish at 6,817 points. ---------------------------------------------------------------- 0745 GMT - Mid-caps stocks lift Dubai's measure to a one-week high as buyers return following a sustained sell-off last month, while other Gulf markets are mixed. Dubai Islamic Bank and budget carrier Air Arabia are Dubai's main supports, rising 4.3 and 3.4 percent respectively. Dubai's measure fell 6.2 percent from Feb. 24's 39-month peak to reach a two-month low on Monday, but bargain hunters have since helped the market rebound. The index rises 1.2 percent to 1,877 points, its highest since March 26. "The drop in prices created an opportunity that encouraged the market bulls, especially foreign investors," says Firass Yaish, business development manager at One Financial Markets. "The bulk of their liquidity is extremely selective towards heavyweight stocks, particularly Emaar. Looks like Emaar is the wining horse of 2013." Emaar Properties climbs 0.6 percent to be up 43 percent in 2013. The stock is a favoured pick among investors as Dubai's real troubled estate sector shows signs of a tentative recovery. Abu Dhabi's measure rises 0.4 percent to 3,033 points and Oman's bourse advances 0.6 percent to 6,092 points. Elsewhere, Qatar's benchmark eases 0.2 percent to 8,555 points and Kuwait's index declines 0.1 percent to 6,805 points. ---------------------------------------------------------- 0559 GMT - Cairo's benchmark is expected to remain volatile on Thursday as institutional investors stay away and traders sell stocks on fears Egypt's currency could weaken further. After two years of political upheaval, foreign currency reserves in Egypt have fallen to critically low levels, limiting Egypt's ability to buy wheat, of which it is the world's biggest importer, and fuel. The main share benchmark fell 2.2 percent on Wednesday to its lowest level since Dec. 6. "Egypt is trading at a discount due to the political and economic risks it has been facing - obviously the volatility will be high," says Marwan Shurrab, vice-president and chief trader at Gulfmena Investments. "The market is unpredictable due to the fact that most trading is happening on the retail level and there's an obvious lack of institutional investors in the market." Global concerns will also weigh on the Gulf bourses. International investors are nervously watching developments in the Korean Peninsula, while Asian stocks are down after weak data stoked concerns the key American jobs report due later in the week will signal slowing U.S. growth. Kuwait's banks will be in focus after parliament approved a law on Wednesday to buy some citizens' personal loans and write off the interest after lawmakers argued that banks had overcharged Kuwaitis for credit. Under the law, banks would have to pay back any overcharged interest to citizens. This would apply to interest charged at more than 4 percent over the discount rate and it was not immediately clear how much this would cost. (Reporting by Praveen Menon; Editing by Matt Smith)