Dubai:
Etisalat, which went ex-dividend on Thursday, weighed on Abu Dhabi index even as the Dubai index closed marginally lower.
Etisalat closed 1.17 per cent lower to Dh16.95. The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange general index closed 0.7 per cent lower to 4,811.42. First Abu Dhabi Bank closed 0.74 per cent lower to Dh13.5.
“First Abu Dhabi Bank’s shares continue to trade on the index but with no material gains as the hype created after its previous quarter’s earnings dies down and investor’s begin to look elsewhere,” Issam Kassabieh, senior analyst with Menacorp said.
FAB posted a 19 per cent rise in second quarter net profit to be at Dh3.06 billion, compared to Dh2.56 billion in the year-before peirod.
Other banks like Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB), and Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB) rose a tad. ADCB closed 0.14 per cent higher to Dh7.18. ADIB closed 0.77 per cent higher to Dh3.95. “This (Traders looking away from FAB) may provide an opportunity for Abu Dhabi’s other banks, particularly ADCB, which has been providing strong financials but has been mostly overlooked due to the activity around FAB,” Kassabieh said.
“Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank, however, may see some downward pressure with its capital increase as investors look towards other Islamic banks, a trend that was noticed previously on the DFM with DIB’s capital increase,” he added.
The Dubai Financial Market general index closed 0.15 per cent lower to 2,973.94.
Emaar Properties closed 0.74 per cent lower to Dh 5.33. Gulf Finance House closed 0.70 per cent lower to Dh1.41. Drake and Scull closed more than 3 per cent lower to Dh 0.636.
Elsewhere in the Gulf, Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul index closed at 8,253.54, down 0.43 per cent. The Qatar exchange index closed 0.05 per cent higher to 9,981.22. The Muscat MSM 30 index closed 0.32 per cent lower to 4,326.67.
