Abu Dhabi retreats from record highs tracking oil; Dubai rebounds

Traders wait at the Bahrain Exchange after Joe Biden won the U.S. presidency in Manama, Bahrain, November 8, 2020.REUTERS/Hamad Mohamed Mohamed

Aug 12 (Reuters) – Abu Dhabi closed lower on Friday, pulling back from record highs in line with oil prices, as weak corporate earnings dampened investor appetite, while Dubai bucked the trend.

Crude oil prices were the main catalyst for Gulf financial markets, falling more than $1 to $98.26 on Friday, as the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) cut its forecast for global oil demand growth in 2022 by 260,000 bpd.

Abu Dhabi Index (.FTFADGI) It closed down 0.6%, ending its five-day winning streak as a conglomerate international holding company (IHC.AD) Down 1.4%, First Abu Dhabi Bank, the emirate’s largest bank (FAB.AD) Down 0.8%.

Among other stocks, Julphar (JULPHAR.AD) Shares fell 3.7% after Gulf Pharma’s second-quarter net profit fell more than 90% to AED4.8 million ($1.31 million).

The Abu Dhabi index rose 3.3% on the week, according to Refinitiv data.

Dubai’s main stock index (.DFMGI) Up 0.3%, supported by a 0.7% gain in Sharia-compliant bank Dubai Islamic Bank (DISB.DU)while the low-cost airline Air Arabia (AIRA.DU) The company’s shares rose 2.3 percent a day after its second-quarter net profit surged 16-fold from a year earlier to 160 million dirhams ($43.56 million).

However, Dubai-based blue-chip developer Emaar Properties (Emar. You) Shares fell 1.6 percent after the company reached a deal with Dubai Holdings to buy its stake in a Dubai Creek Harbour joint venture for 7.5 billion dirhams ($2.04 billion). read more

The Dubai stock market was volatile after the announcement of mixed earnings results. However, MENA BDSwiss CEO Daniel Takieddine said the market could see further gains after some price correction.

(1 USD = 3.6727 UAE Dirham)

Reporting by Mohd Edrees in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber

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