The Roads and Transport Authority offers multiple ways for motorists to pay their parking fees without having to do it physically
“Steady oil and positive markets across the region on improved volume look set to help the UAE deliver a positive weekly gain,” said Matthew Wakeman, managing director of cash and equity linked trading at EFG-Hermes.
The Dubai Financial Market general index climbed 1.86 per cent to 1,532.82, buoyed by real estate stocks which rose 6.35 percent.
The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange benchmark index gained 1.36 per cent to 2,226.16 as the real estate sector edged up 5.18 per cent while banks added 1.56 per cent.
Speculation as well as the re-entry of some foreign institutions raised volume in both bourses, with $80 million in Dubai, 165 per cent higher from Monday, while $45 million changed hands in Abu Dhabi, up 45 percent from the previous session.
Arabatec Holding, the country’s biggest construction company which is building the world’s tallest tower in Dubai, rallied for a third day, soaring 10.81 percent to Dh1.23 after giving up nearly 30 percent last week, weighed by a string of setbacks in its projects.
“Sentiment on Arabtec is shifting as panic and fear are now giving way to fundamentals and thinking that maybe too much bad news is priced in. The stock looks to have turned a corner,” said Wakeman.
Investors remained bullish about Deyaar Development, one of Dubai’s leading property developers after reporting positive fourth quarter and full-year results. The stock jumped 7.84 percent to Dh0.55.
Market mover Emaar Properties rose 5.23 percent to Dh2.01.
In Abu Dhabi, property developer Sorouh Real Estate surged 7.78 per cent to Dh2.82. HSBC Holdings Plc cut its target price for Sorouh to Dh6.6 from Dh9.4 but kept its “overweight” rating on the stock.
Gains though are unlikely to be sustained with “nothing changing on the macroeconomic level,” said Chamel Fahmy of Beltone Financial Securities.
Economists have forecast the UAE economy to contract this year amid the global economic malaise, with the property and banking industries likely to take the hardest fall.
“The banking sector for one is still risky given the slowdown, so some banks are up on speculative buying ahead of the announcement of their results. Some stocks are good buys after last week’s heavy losses. So it’s mostly short-term opportunities that are triggering the market rebound,” said Fahmy.
Banking issues in Abu Dhabi dominated trading. First Gulf Bank reported positive fourth-quarter results but closed flat at Dh7.33 as it missed analysts’ forecasts.
The bank said its fourth-quarter net profit grew 8 percent to Dh671 million on core business revenue. Its full-year net income went up 50 per cent to Dh3 billion.
The National Bank of Abu Dhabi gained 5.15 per cent to Dh8.50. Other banks advanced with Bank of Sharjah up 8.42 per cent to Dh1.04; Sharjah Islamic Bank added 7.79 percent to Dh0.84; and Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank added 6.12 per cent to Dh1.61.
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