UAE stocks end week on positive note

The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange ended the day in positive territory on Thursday, buoyed by Sharjah Cement and Industrial Development (SCIDC) and Eshraq.

The ADX closed up 0.2 per cent to 4,603.2 points, with SCIDC gaining 8. 4 per cent and Eshraq putting on 4.9 per cent.

Other gainers included Gulf Cement, up 4.1 per cent and Invest bank, up 3.3 per cent.

Fallers were led by Commercial Bank International, which tumbled 9.8 per cent and Watanai, down by 9.5 per cent.

In Dubai, the DFM closed up 0.6 per cent at 2,880.4 points, with Khaleeji Commercial Bank and Gulf Navigation leading the way, up 10.4 and 8.7 per cent, respectively. Losers included Takaful Emarat, down 5.8 per cent and Almadina, sliding 3.4 per cent.

In Saudi Arabia, the Tadawul closed down 0.8 per cent to 8,177.6 points. Wataniya ended up 3.2 per cent and Amana Insurance rose 2.2 per cent. Arabian Pipes gained 0.1 per cent. AlHokair dropped 9.2 per cent, Saudi Real Estate lost 4.7 per cent and Enaya fell 2.5 per cent.

Oil extended losses after Saudi Aramco lowered August pricing for most crude grades in Asia and Europe and cut them all in the US, Bloomberg reported. It cut pricing for a key crude grade to Asia, its biggest market.

Aramco set the premium for Arab Light crude for Asia at $1.90 per barrel above the Middle East benchmark, it said. The 20-cent reduction was the first cut in four months from the highest since July 2014.

Brent crude was at $78.15, down 0.1 per cent at 6.45pm UAE time, while West Texas Intermediate was at $73.98, down 0.2 per cent.

Gold, meanwhile, Gold drifted lower despite a weaker dollar as investors worried that US Federal Reserve minutes would highlight the prospect of further rate hikes. Spot gold was down 0.2 percent at $1,254.31 an ounce by 1345 GMT. The metal touched a one-week high of $1,261.10 in the previous session and had gained over $20 from Tuesday’s low of $1,237.32, its weakest since December 12.

It later rallied to gain 0.4 per cent to $1,256 per ounce at 6.45pm UAE time.

“Gold is not making huge headway even though we’re in a slightly weaker dollar environment. The market is very much in a wait-and-see mode ahead of the Fed minutes,” said Jonathan Butler, commodities analyst at Mitsubishi in London.