Abu Dhabi’s stock market rose yesterday, lifted by property companies after Sorouh Real Estate reported a 34 per cent rise in second-quarter profit.
The developer, in a statement to the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange, said net income jumped to Dh148.2 million from Dh110m last year. Shares rose 1.9 per cent to Dh1.05 yesterday.
Aldar Properties, the developer behind Yas Island and Ferrari World, surged 3.5 per cent to Dh1.16.
Sorouh, the developer behind Reem Island’s Sun and Sky Towers is in merger talks with Aldar. In June, the two companies said the due diligence process would take months.
“Aldar and Sorouh have been laggards of late as most of the focus was on Dubai real estate,” said Marwan Shurrab, the vice president and chief trader at Gulfmena Investments in Dubai.
“Now the focus has shifted back to Abu Dhabi.” The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange General Index rose 0.4 per cent to close at 2,506.23.
Emaar Properties, based in Dubai, rose for a second day, up 0.3 per cent to Dh3.38. The developer’s shares jumped 4 per cent after second-quarter net income reached Dh614m, up 45 per cent from a year ago.
Dubai Islamic Bank’s shares were halted from trading in the last hour of the session as its board met to ratify the second-quarter results. Before the suspension, the shares gained 1 per cent to Dh1.93. On Monday, they rose 1.6 per cent. The Sharia-compliant bank reported a net profit of Dh310m in the second quarter, down 6.2 per cent from a year earlier.
The Dubai Financial Market General Index added 0.3 per cent to 1,542.64.
Elsewhere in the region, Kuwait slipped 0.1 per cent to 5,720.37, Bahrain was up 0.08 per cent to 1,099.82, Oman fell 0.1 per cent to 5,358.29, Qatar added 0.2 per cent to 8,298.33.
The Saudi Tadawul All-Share Index rose .81 per cent to 6878.19.
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