Etisalat shares rebound as Indian partner Majestic Infracon withdraws petition
August 02, 2011--The ADX General Index closed 0.30% higher at 2,645.81 points. ADX heavyweight Etisalat added half a percent and closed at Dhs10.30. Earlier in the day, Etisalat said in a statement which was published on the ADX website, that its joint venture partner in India, Majestic Infracon has withdrawn its petition against Etisalat before India's Honorable Company Law Board.
In the dropped petition, Majestic Infracon blamed Etisalat of not fulfilling certain obligations. Aldar Properties closed flat at Dhs1.29. Abu Dhabi National Energy Co. dived 2.33% to Dhs1.26. Around 27.08m shares were traded, valued at Dhs58.6m.
Source: AME Info
Dubai market gains for the third day straight
August 2, 2011--Despite negative input from declining markets in East Asia and Western Europe, the Dubai market DFM closed 0.66% higher at 1,536.42 points.
Financial shares, like Emirates NBD (up 2.44% at Dhs4.20) or GGICO (9.22% higher at Dhs0.32) drove the DFM's momentum. Emaar was the most liquid share a recaptured the level at Dhs3. Islamic developer Deyaar declined 1.08% to Dhs0.276). Despite the rising heat in August and the start of the Holy month of Ramadan, trading turnover increased further. Around 93.45m shares were traded, valued at Dhs143.96m. Ten shares gained, nine declined and four ended even.
Source: AME Info
U. S. debt deal fuels Saudi Stock Exchange's rebound
August 01, 2011--The Tadawul bourse posted the highest advance in the GCC, as the Tasi benchmark surged 1.25% to 6,471.82 points. Sabic shares jumped 2.43%, closing at SR105.25.
The Saudi market benefitted the most from the Washington debt compromise, as KSA's economy enjoys the strongest relations to the U. S. Investors booked profits at a number of insurance firms, such as Amana Insurance (off 1.04% at SR38).
Source: AME Info
Qatar Exchange finishes slightly higher
August 01, 2011--The QE Index added 0.11%, closing at 8,412.44 points.
Shares of mall and retail property management company Aamal dipped 0.17% and closed at QR18.07. Earlier in the day, Aamal reported a net profit of QR103.3m in comparison to QR98.4m for the same period last year. The company's Earning per Share (EPS) amounted to QR0.21 as of June 30, 2011 versus QR0.20 for the corresponding period in 2010.
Source: AME Info
Kuwait bourse benefits slightly from U. S. debt deal
August 01, 2011--The Kuwait bourse could not advance to the degree like most other GCC markets in Monday, as the KSE Market Index gained 0.11% to close at 6,037.2 points.
Commercial Bank of Kuwait, known as CBK, surged 2.4%, ending at KD0.850. Telecom provider Zain closed even at KD0.990, although Zain reported yesterday a 17% increase in net profits for the first half of 2011.
Source: AME Info
Sorouh Real Estate soars as H1 profit jumps sixfold
August 01, 2011--The Abu Dhabi-based ADX General Index ended up 0.69% at 2,637.88 points. Shares of the emirate's second real estate developer Sorouh gained 1.63%, finishing at Dhs1.25.
Earlier in the day, Sorouh reported an interim profit for the first half year of Dhs125.31m, compared to Dhs20.2m in the same period last year. Sorouh's provision for doubtful debts fell to Dhs6.15m form Dhs41m. Shares of Abu Dhabi National Energy Co., better known as Taqa (Arab. for energy) surged 3.20% to Dhs1.30. Around 30.6m shares were traded, valued at Dhs58.38m.
Source: AME Info
Dubai market gains amid rising turnover
August 01, 2011--The DFM General Index shrugged off worries about plummetting trading volumes on the first day of the Holy month of Ramadan and closed 0.58% higher at 1,526.34 points. In fact, trading turnover picked up and stocks surged across the board, with Emaar Properties rising to Dhs2.96 (up 2.78%) as the most liquid share.
Only two banks failed to jump on the bandwagon: bank Emirates NBD (off 4.65% at Dhs4.10) and Dubai Islamic Bank (one percent lower at Dhs2.04). Around 69.23m shares were traded, valued at Dhs97.3m.
Source: AME Info
Oman's fiscal surplus set to widen in 2011
August 1, 2011--According to figures by the Arab Monetary Fund (AMF), a surge in oil prices is expected to widen Oman's fiscal surplus through 2011 despite a sharp increase in spending following new jobs and pay rises for national civil servants, Emirates 24-7 has reported.
The Sultanate had projected a shortfall of OR850m ($2.2bn) when it announced its record 2011 budget early this year, but it revised up the gap to OR1.85bn ($4.8bn) after Sultan Qaboos approved new jobs and hefty pay rises for Omani government employees in response to demands during unrest in two months ago.
Source: AME Info
Kuwait: Selected Issues
August 1, 2011--A. Background
1. Fiscal policy is the main macroeconomic policy instrument in GCC countries given
their institutional and macroeconomic frameworks—large state-controlled endowment of natural resources; pegged exchange rate regimes, and relatively open financial accounts.
2. In spite of the relevance of fiscal policy, there is little work on the impact of fiscal policy on economic activity in the GCC. In recent work, Espinoza and Senhadji (2011) estimated the magnitude of fiscal multipliers in GCC countries and found the multipliers for total government expenditures—i.e., the increase in nonoil GDP in response to an increase in government expenditure—to be in the range of 0.2–0.3 (short-term multiplier) and 0.4–0.7 (long-term multiplier). They also investigated the impact of different types of expenditures, and obtained long-term multipliers in the range of 0.6–1.1 for capital expenditure and 0.3–0.7 for current expenditure.
Source: IMF
Tadawul bourse shows resilience
July 31, 2011--Saudi Arabia: Despite global worries over the possible U. S. sovereign default, the Tasi benchmark added 0.57% to close at 6,392.13 points.
Sabic shares gained in line with index half a percent, ending at SR102.75. Once again, an insurer topped the charts: United Cooperative Assurance Co. surged 9.92%, finishing at SR28.80. [AMEInfo.com]
Source: AME Info