Business | Markets
UAE stocks advance on etisalat's gains
Dubai and Abu Dhabi indices rise on speculation about healthy corporate results.
- Bloomberg
- Published: 00:11 January 28, 2008
Dubai: All seven of the Gulf benchmarks advanced on Sunday. UAE stocks rose, led by etisalat and Dubai Islamic Bank, on speculation companies will report higher earnings this week.
In Saudi Arabia, PetroRabigh soared after its initial public offering.
The Abu Dhabi Securities Market Index added 2.2 per cent to close at 4,683.21, bringing the three-day advance to 8.9 per cent.
The Dubai Financial Market General Index increased 1.2 per cent, while Saudi Arabia's Tadawul All Share Index climbed 3.8 per cent.
etisalat jumped 5.2 per cent to Dh24.5. The stock trades at 18 times estimated earnings, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. That compares with an average of 19 for members of Abu Dhabi's benchmark.
etisalat shares have risen 6.3 per cent this year. Dubai Islamic Bank added 1.4 per cent to Dh10.95.
etisalat announces results tomorrow. Dubai Islamic Bank, the biggest Sharia-compliant bank in the UAE, may also report earnings this week.
"Investors expect annual earnings of etisalat and Dubai Islamic to be quite robust, something in the region of 30 and 50 per cent growth respectively,'' Mohammad Dwaikat, a senior broker at Abu Dhabi-based Al Fajer Securities, said. "On top of that, etisalat is quite cheap at the moment.''
The Gulf Cooperation Council countries are earning more than $1.3 billion a day with crude above $90 a barrel.
Economies in the Gulf will expand at a faster rate in 2008 than last year, EFG-Hermes Holding said in a report.
PetroRabigh
PetroRabigh, the chemicals and refining complex being built by Saudi Aramco and Sumitomo Chemical more than doubled to 52.25 riyals in the first day of trading after its 4.6 billion-riyal IPO. The shares were sold at 21 riyals.
"The massive demand on the shares shows the investors' hunger for a piece of Aramco,'' Shadi Zubeidi, head of investment banking advisory at Saudi Swiss Securities, said from Riyadh yesterday.
"Aramco combines growth with confidence for many investors who see the shares as an opportunity to diversify their portfolios.''
The sale of a 25 per cent stake in PetroRabigh to the public is the first unit to be sold by Saudi Aramco, the world's largest oil company by output.
Saudi Chemical advanced 3.3 per cent to 31 riyals. The Saudi distributor of drugs made by Astra-Zeneca and GlaxoSmithKline bought 20 per cent of Philadelphia-based ExploTrack, which makes systems for tracking and securing explosives.
The Kuwait Stock Exchange Index rose 0.6 per cent, climbing for a third day.
Gulf Insurance Company KSC rallied 5.6 per cent to 950 fils. The Kuwaiti insurer's full-year net income surged to 37.6 million dinars from 8.3 million in 2006.
Qatar's Doha Securities Market Index added 0.8 per cent, while Oman's Muscat Securities Market 30 Index gained 1.7 per cent. The Bahrain All Share Index increased 0.2 per cent.
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