Earnings misses hit UAE, Egypt stocks; Saudi soft

dubai — Disappointing quarterly earnings among big banks pulled down stock markets in the UAE on Thursday, while Orascom Telecom posted a big net loss that weighed on Egypt’s bourse.

Abu Dhabi’s index lost one per cent. Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank nose-dived 7.7 per cent after it reported first-quarter net profit of Dh1.02 billion ($277.7 million), missing analysts’ forecasts.

First Gulf Bank made a net profit of Dh1.33 billion, down six per cent as income from fees and commissions slipped, and its shares fell 1.2 per cent.

National Bank of Abu Dhabi retreated 1.3 per cent after reporting a 10.7 per cent fall in net profit to Dh1.27 billion.In Dubai, the stock index pulled back 0.4 per cent with Dubai Islamic Bank dropping two per cent.

EFG Hermes had forecast Dh938 million.

Other Dubai shares also fell as investors booked profits in stocks that had outperformed this week after posting better-than-expected earnings. Emaar Malls dropped 1.7 per cent.

Egypt’s Orascom Telecom retreated 1.3 per cent after reporting a net loss of 3.6 billion Egyptian pounds ($405 million) in 2015 versus a net profit of 263.98 million pounds a year earlier.

Cairo’s main stock index pulled back 1.2 per cent.

In Riyadh, the index edged down 0.2 per cent as investors booked profits, but still gained 3.3 per cent over the week.

Builder Jabal Omar Development fell 1.9 per cent after reporting a quarterly net loss of 43.99 million riyals ($11.7 million) compared with a 65.05 million riyal profit a year earlier.

Al Tayyar Travel added a further 2.6 per cent after it jumped 7.7 per cent on Wednesday.

In Qatar, telecommunications operator Ooredoo rose 0.6 per cent after it reported a 75 per cent leap in first-quarter net profit to 879 million riyals ($241.4 million), driven by foreign exchange gains.

Analysts at EFG Hermes and Sico Bahrain had forecast 452.5 million riyals and 487 million riyals.

Barwa Real Estate reported an 80 per cent fall in first-quarter net profit, but its shares jumped 5.0 per cent as investors recognised the drop in earnings was mainly due to a one-off sale of real estate worth 2.7 billion riyals in the yearearlier period. —