Regional market slump deepens

Dubai: Following worldwide trends, the UAE and other regional markets slumped on Sunday as investors continued to grapple with the twin worries of an imminent global recession and sliding oil prices - despite the cuts agreed upon by Opec.

"UAE market correlation today to the Morgan Stanley World Index is much higher than what it was in 2007," said Ali Khan, executive director of capital markets at Arqaam Capital.

"Therefore, the UAE is reacting more to what is happening on international markets rather than anything specific in the region," he said, adding that falling oil prices, though, were a factor.

The Dubai Financial Market General (DFM) Index lost 4.74 per cent to close at 3,102.65. The DFM has lost almost 25 per cent this quarter. The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange Index declined 132.65 points or 3.77 per cent to 3,389.76.

The markets in the region followed massive declines in Asia, Europe and the US, where markets were down in early trading. Tokyo's Nikkei 225 plunged 9.60 per cent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng retreated 8.30 and South Korea's Kospi tumbled 10.57 per cent.

In the region, Qatar's main index fell 8.93 per cent, its biggest one-day drop in two years, and Oman's Muscat Securities posted its biggest one-day decline since January to close 8.29 per cent lower. Kuwait lost 4.36 per cent and Bahrain ended 3.65 per cent lower.