Doha, March 12 (QNA) - The main index of the Qatar Stock Exchange fell in early trading on Thursday, declining by 0.64% as losses in several major sectors weighed on the market.

According to official market data, the benchmark index dropped 67.99 points to 10,509 points compared with the previous session's close.

The decline was driven by weaker performance in five sectors, including banks and financial services, industry, transport, real estate, and consumer goods and services.

The banking and financial services sector recorded the steepest drop, falling by 0.84%, while the industrial sector declined by 0.91%. Transport shares were down 0.54%, and the real estate sector fell by 0.48%. Consumer goods and services slipped by 0.10%.

By contrast, two sectors posted gains during early trading. The insurance sector rose by 1.03%, while telecommunications edged up by 0.15%.

Trading activity reached around QR 38.02 million by 10:00 local time. The turnover was spread across approximately 13.9 million traded shares through 2,497 transactions, according to figures released by the Qatar Stock Exchange. (QNA)