Citadel Capital up on speculation Abraaj Capital may buy stake

Egypt's Citadel Capital made the biggest gain this month as investors speculated that the Dubai-based private equity firm Abraaj Capital may buy a stake in the firm.

Shares of Citadel Capital rose 4 per cent to 5.90 Egyptian pounds a share, after Reuters reported that "talks are still at a very preliminary stage and no formal offer has been made," citing an anonymous source.

Abraaj Capital manages assets of over $6 billion and Citadel manages assets of $4 billion.

Last week, shares rose as much as 20 per cent on speculation that Citadel had received an offer for its shares at 8 Egyptian pounds. The company responded on June 2, saying it hasn't received "this offer directly and hasn't been informed by its shareholders about them getting an official offer."

Egypt's benchmark was up 0.3 per cent to 5438.05 points.

In the UAE, trading was mixed ahead of an OPEC meeting in Vienna, where investors will be looking for cues on a decision to lift oil output to stimulate growth and curb energy inflation.

The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange General Index closed 0.2 per cent higher to 2696.36 points, while the Dubai Financial Market General Index was down 0.7 per cent to 1552.74 points.

Elsewhere in the region, Kuwait's measure declined 0.1 per cent to 6308.10. Bahrain's index gained 0.6 per cent to 1347.34. Oman's measure lost 0.8 per cent to 5999.38.

Qatar's benchmark was unchanged at 8183.41. The Saudi Tadawul All-Share Index was down 0.8 per cent to 6556.86.

halsayegh@thenational.ae