Dubai: Dubai's benchmark stock index advanced the most among Gulf peers as real estate shares extended gains.
The Dubai Financial Market General Index rose as much as 1.3%, up for a fifth day in its longest winning streak since March. The sub-index tracking Dubai-based real estate shares climbed as much as 2.4% on Sunday, touching the highest level since November 2019. Those shares are trading higher amid a residential property price rally Morgan Stanley sees lasting for years.
Vaccinations are "helping a lot the reopening theme from an investment case perspective," particularly in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, Ali El Adou, head of asset management at Daman Investments in Dubai, said in an interview with Bloomberg TV. The UAE, a federation of seven sheikdoms including Dubai, has one of the highest inoculation rates globally.
"We're still bullish, in terms of that theme, especially when we're now talking about malls, real estate, airlines, logistics, so we're still focusing on that," he said.
Meanwhile, gauges in Abu Dhabi, Kuwait and Israel notched gains while those in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Qatar were little changed. Omani shares declined.
