Mideast Stocks: Most stock markets end higher; Dubai extends losses

Sa Sa International Holdings

01/02/2022 13:26

By Ateeq Shariff
    Feb 1 (Reuters) - Most stock markets in the Gulf ended
higher on Tuesday amid strong fundamentals and rising oil
prices, while the Dubai index extended losses on plans for a
federal corporate tax and geopolitical tensions.
    Saudi Arabia's benchmark index  .TASI  added 0.2%, helped by
a 1.5% gain in the kingdom's largest lender Saudi National Bank
 1180.SE .
    Stock markets in the Gulf were mostly rising thanks to the
strong energy markets and solid local fundamentals. The region
is benefiting from a post COVID recovery and decreasing concerns
about the spread of the Omicron variant, said Eman AlAyyaf, CEO
of EA Trading.
    The Qatari benchmark  .QSI  gained 0.6%, with Qatar Gas
Transport  QGTS.QA  jumping 3.9%.
    In Abu Dhabi, the index  .ADI  reversed early losses to end
0.2% higher, with conglomerate International Holding  IHC.AD 
gaining 0.7%.
    Dubai's main share index  .DFMGI  finished 1% lower,
extending losses from the previous session, weighed down by a
1.7% fall in blue-chip developer Emaar Properties  EMAR.DU .
    The United Arab Emirates (UAE) said on Monday it would
introduce a federal corporate tax on business profits for the
first time starting from June 1, 2023, although it kept the rate
low, at 9%, to maintain its attractiveness for businesses.
 urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2UB0KE
    Corporate taxes on profit are expected to reduce net
earnings for companies outside free zone properties, creating a
bearish sentiment in the market, according to Vijay Valecha,
chief investment officer of Century Financial.
    "Additionally, increasing geopolitical tensions between the
UAE and Yemen are weighing heavily on the local bourses."
    On Monday, the UAE intercepted a ballistic missile fired by
Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi movement, the third such attack on
the U.S.-allied Gulf state in the last two weeks.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2UA0FC
    Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index  .EGX30  closed 1%
higher, led by a 1.1% increase in top lender Commercial
International Bank  COMI.CA .
       
 SAUDI ARABIA   .TASI  rose 0.2% to 12,293
 ABU DHABI      .FTFADGI  up 0.2% to 8,717
 DUBAI          .DFMGI  dropped 1% to 3,171
 QATAR          .QSI  gained 0.6% to 12,573
 EGYPT          .EGX30  added 1% to 11,603
 BAHRAIN        .BAX  was up 0.3% to 1,815
 OMAN           .MSX30  fell 0.1% to 4,111
 KUWAIT         .BKP  rose 0.3% to 8,033
 
 (Reporting by Ateeq Shariff in Bengaluru
Additional reporting by Saeed Azhar
Editing by Mark Potter)
 ((AteeqUr.Shariff@thomsonreuters.com; +918061822788;))