* Trading volumes low as Ramadan, summer holidays loom
* Shuaa jumps as lay-offs spur stake sale hopes
* GFH Financial rises before briefing
* Saudi's Al Yamamah Steel ends post-listing rally
* Medinet Nasr continues climbing in Egypt
By Andrew Torchia
DUBAI, May 24 (Reuters) - Most Gulf stock markets rose on Tuesday but trading volumes were small as some investors stayed away because of the approach of the holy month of Ramadan and summer holidays, when activity tends to decrease in some bourses.
Dubai's index
.DFMGI
spent most of the day little changed but closed 1.0 percent higher after a surge in the final half-hour.
Investment bank Shuaa Capital
SHUA.DU
jumped 3.7 percent in unusually heavy trade after sources told Reuters that it cut about 15 percent of its workforce at the end of last week, ahead of a possible sale of a stake in the company by Dubai Group.
urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL5N18K0ER
Dubai Group mandated Emirates NBD in April to arrange a sales process for its 48 percent stake in Shuaa. There is speculation in the market that a major financial firm in Dubai or the Middle East could buy the stake; Shuaa did not respond to requests for comment.
GFH Financial
GFH.DU
, the most heavily traded stock, added 2.1 percent after it invited its shareholders and investors to attend a briefing by senior management in Dubai on Wednesday afternoon on its future prospects.
Saudi Arabia's index
.TASI
rose 0.8 percent in its thinnest volume since early January, with the petrochemical sector index
.TPISI
climbing 1.1 percent.
But Al Yamamah Steel
1304.SE
, which had jumped 15 percent in its first two days of trade since listing on Sunday, fell back 2.4 percent.
Abu Dhabi's index
.ADI
rose 0.6 percent. Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank
ADCB.AD
climbed 1.5 percent but seven of the 10 most heavily traded stocks were flat or lower.
Qatar
.QSI
fell 0.2 percent as real estate firm Ezdan
ERES.QA
lost 0.9 percent but drilling rig provider Gulf International Services
GISS.QA
, again the most heavily traded stock, surged 2.6 percent.
Egypt's index
.EGX30
rebounded 1.1 percent, buoyed by Global Telecom
GTHE.CA
, which added 1.3 percent.
Real estate firm Medinet Nasr
MNHD.CA
, which rose 2.0 percent on Monday when it reported that quarterly net profit jumped 90 percent, gained a further 1.7 percent after saying it was considering taking out a 1 billion Egyptian pound ($113 million) loan to speed up development of one of its plots.
urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL3N18L2S3
TUESDAY'S HIGHLIGHTS
SAUDI ARABIA
* The index
.TASI
rose 0.8 percent to 6,475 points.
DUBAI
* The index
.DFMGI
gained 1.0 percent to 3,248 points.
ABU DHABI
* The index
.ADI
rose 0.6 percent to 4,222 points.
QATAR
* The index
.QSI
fell 0.2 percent to 9,665 points.
EGYPT
* The index
.EGX30
rose 1.1 percent to 7,497 points.
KUWAIT
* The index
.KWSE
gained 0.2 percent to 5,323 points.
OMAN
* The index
.MSI
fell 0.2 percent to 5,937 points.
BAHRAIN
* The index
.BAX
edged up 0.1 percent to 1,101 points.
(Editing by William Hardy) ((andrew.torchia@thomsonreuters.com)(+9715 6681 7277)(Reuters Messaging: andrew.torchia.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
* Shuaa jumps as lay-offs spur stake sale hopes
* GFH Financial rises before briefing
* Saudi's Al Yamamah Steel ends post-listing rally
* Medinet Nasr continues climbing in Egypt
By Andrew Torchia
DUBAI, May 24 (Reuters) - Most Gulf stock markets rose on Tuesday but trading volumes were small as some investors stayed away because of the approach of the holy month of Ramadan and summer holidays, when activity tends to decrease in some bourses.
Dubai's index
Investment bank Shuaa Capital
Dubai Group mandated Emirates NBD in April to arrange a sales process for its 48 percent stake in Shuaa. There is speculation in the market that a major financial firm in Dubai or the Middle East could buy the stake; Shuaa did not respond to requests for comment.
GFH Financial
Saudi Arabia's index
But Al Yamamah Steel
Abu Dhabi's index
Qatar
Egypt's index
Real estate firm Medinet Nasr
TUESDAY'S HIGHLIGHTS
SAUDI ARABIA
* The index
DUBAI
* The index
ABU DHABI
* The index
QATAR
* The index
EGYPT
* The index
KUWAIT
* The index
OMAN
* The index
BAHRAIN
* The index
(Editing by William Hardy) ((andrew.torchia@thomsonreuters.com)(+9715 6681 7277)(Reuters Messaging: andrew.torchia.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))