Property and banking stocks push Dubai to lower close

STOCKS NEWS: Dubai Financial Market. (Getty Images)

Dubai's bourse slipped, paced by property and banking shares as investors took gains from recent gains.

Dubai's index dropped 1.6 percent to 2,258 points.

"It's a healthy correction that was expected given the strong performance since the beginning of the month," said Marwan Shurrab, vice-president and chief trader at Gulfmena Alternative Investments.

Among the biggest decliners were Emirates NBD and Emaar Properties, each falling about 2.4 percent.

Small caps Al Madina Finance and Investment and Ekttitab Holding Company gained 7.1 percent and 14.5 percent respectively. Analysts attributed the gains to speculation.

Abu Dhabi's measure retreated 0.9 to 3,156 points.

Markets in Qatar and Kuwait ended lower, dragged down by weak performance of individual bluechips, tracking sentiment across emerging markets.

Qatar's benchmark ended 0.5 percent lower to 7,372 points, while Kuwait's index retreated 0.3 percent to 7,635 points.

Industries Qatar fell 2 percent and Doha Bank traded 2.1 percent lower.

Commercial Bank of Qatar fell nearly 2 percent to SR73.90. Credit Suisse on Tuesday cut the company's price target to SR93, but kept outperforming rating.

In Kuwait, Gulf Bank fell for the third in a row.

Bahrain's bourse bucked the regional trend and advanced 0.3 percent to 1,551 points.

Saudi stocks ended in negative territory, as profit-taking hit most markets in the regions lower.

The main index ended 0.4 percent lower at 6,516 points. Saudi Cable Company fell nearly 10 percent. The company said on the bourse website that its third-quarter profits fell to 20.1 million riyals, down from 92.3 million riyals a year earlier, blaming increased competition and the global crisis.

Several banks, including Riyad Bank, ended higher, but cannot prevent the market from ending in red.

Saudi insurer Tawuniya ended 9.7 percent higher, after its CEO made comments on its fourth-quarter performance. (Reuters)

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READERS' COMMENTS

Weird Market
Posted by Az, Dubai, UAE on Wednesday 21 October 2009 at 19:04 UAE time


Well what I dont understand is that why does Emaar share fluctuate so much. If you think of it, the Dubai Mall, Downtown Burj Dubai, Arabian Ranches, Emirates Hills and Dubai Marina are all by Emaar. And now Emaar is in Healthcare and Education. To top it all, the Burj Dubai will be ready in a few months. I feel the Emaar share will go up considerably.

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