Dubai dips on real estate

Oil hurts major Gulf markets

DUBAI, Dec 5, (RTRS): The Dubai stock market fell to its lowest in nearly three years on Wednesday, pulled down by real estate stocks, while most major Middle Eastern markets slid on falling oil prices.

Oil prices were pulled down by a decline across financial markets, as concern about global growth and evidence of greater crude supply wiped out half of this week’s gains.

“Both weak oil and uncertain near term outlook, be it real estate outlook in Dubai or geopolitics currently, are acting as a drag for many of these markets,” said Nishit Lakhotia, head of research at SICO in Bahrain.

In Dubai, the index slipped 1.6 percent, with Emaar Properties dropping 3.1 percent and Union Properties slumping 6.4 percent to hit their lowest levels since January 2016.

Dubai property prices sank 7.4 percent from a year earlier in the third quarter of 2018, accelerating from a 5.8 percent decline in the second quarter, the United Arab Emirates central bank said in a report on Tuesday.

DAMAC Properties also slid 4.3 percent to its lowest since March 2015.

The Abu Dhabi index lost 1.4 percent after registering its biggest gain in two years on Tuesday. The emirate’s largest bank, First Abu Dhabi Bank, declined 2.3 percent after surging in the last session, its first trading day after its weighting in MSCI’s emerging markets index doubled.

Aldar Properties dropped 2.5 percent, while Eshraq Properties lost 3.1 percent.

Abu Dhabi residential real estate prices dropped 6.1 percent year-onyear in the third quarter after a 6.9 percent slide in the second quarter, the central bank report added.

Saudi Arabia’s main index slipped 0.3 percent, with National Commercial Bank losing 0.6 percent and Al Rajhi Bank also declining 0.6 percent.

The Egyptian blue-chip index lost 0.3 percent after slumping to an 18-month low on Tuesday. Eastern Co was down 2.2 percent and Heliopolis Co For Housing And Development lost 2.1 percent.

Qatar’s index was flat with Qatar National Bank shedding 2.5 percent at 194 riyals after SICO downgraded the stock to ‘sell’ from ‘buy’, at a target price of 180 riyals.

Saudi Arabia

The index lost 0.3 percent to 7,884 points.

Dubai

The index slid 1.6 percent to 2,632 points.

Abu Dhabi

The index fell 1.4 percent to 4,830 points

Qatar

The index was flat at 10,590 points.

Kuwait

The index was up 0.4 percent at 5,390 points.

Egypt

The index fell 0.3 percent to 12,587 points.

Bahrain

The index edged down 0.3 percent to 1,322 points.

Oman

The index was up 0.4 percent at 4,552 points.