Dubai's Tamweel seen lower; Saudi gains may support

Shares in Dubai's Tamweel are expected to open lower after Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) said its board approved plans to fully acquire the mortgage firm.

DIB offered to acquire Tamweel through a share swap - each Tamweel shareholder will be offered ten DIB shares for every 18 Tamweel shares. After closing the offer, DIB will apply to the regulator to delist Tamweel from the Dubai Financial Market.

DIB currently controls 57.33 percent of Tamweel.

"Tamweel shareholders who aren't interested in DIB shares for sure will liquidate the stock today since they set Tamweel fair value at AED1.25 and DIB fair value at AED2.25," Mohab Maher, senior manager - institutional desk at MENA Corp, says in a note.

Tamweel's shares dropped 2.5 percent to close at AED1.19 on Thursday, while DIB closed at AED2.06.

Elsewhere, Saudi Arabia's benchmark surged to a 15-week closing high on Saturday, up 1 percent, as data from the United States showing a recovering jobs market boosted sentiment. The world's largest economy is a major market for the kingdom's oil.

The Gulf region tends to take cues early on Sunday from the Saturday performance of Saudi Arabia, the region's largest bourse by market capitalisation.

World shares rose on Friday and the S&P 500 index recorded its highest close in five years after data on the services sector and labour market data signalled the US economy continues its steady but slow recovery.