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DFM gains, Abu Dhabi index declines the most since Dec

DUBAI — The Dubai Financial Market General Index gained 0.9 per cent to 1,859.96, the highest since March 28. The benchmark gained 0.8 percent for the week. Abu Dhabi’s ADX General Index slid 1.7 per cent, the most this year on lower than average volume as investors held back purchases awaiting the release of first-quarter earnings later this month.

Emirates Telecommunications Corp, the UAE’s biggest phone company, also known as Etisalat, declined the most in more than three months as the shares traded without the right to a dividend.

National Bank of Abu Dhabi PJSC, the UAE’s second-largest bank by assets, dropped the most in almost four months. Abu Dhabi’s ADX General Index, which gained 6.8 per cent last month, slid 1.7 per cent, the most since December 23, to 2,859.57. “Etisalat is dragging Abu Dhabi down, but otherwise we’re seeing a little bit of profit-taking and an absence of institutional buyers,” said Tarek Zohny, a Dubai-based trader at EFG-Hermes Holding SAE. “Investors are holding back from trading significant volumes until earnings season begins.”

Trading on the Abu Dhabi index was 61,177.8, 35 per cent below the six-month average of 94,323.82. Companies in the UAE typically begin announcing first-quarter results at the end of April.

Etisalat, which has a market weight of 26 per cent in the Abu Dhabi gauge, dropped 4.5 per cent, the most since December. The shares traded without the rights to a 0.318 cash dividend payable April 18 and a 10 per cent stock dividend, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. After adjusting for the payouts, the stock fell 1.8 percent to Dh10.85.

National Bank of Abu Dhabi dropped 3.8 percent to Dh11.55. The Dubai Financial Market General Index rose 0.9 per cent to 1,859.96. Oman’s Muscat Securities Market 30 Index gained 0.4 per cent and Qatar’s measure increased 0.1 per cent. The Bahrain All Share Index fell 0.3 per cent and the Kuwait Stock Exchange Index declined 0.8 per cent. Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index was closed for the weekend. —