Dubai Shares Fall on U.S. Stocks Drop, Lack of Dubai World News

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Dubai stocks retreated for the first time in three days after U.S. shares fell, oil closed at the lowest in five weeks and investors sought clarity on the restructuring of government-owned holding company Dubai World.

Emirates NBD PJSC, the United Arab Emirates’ largest bank by assets, declined to its lowest level since October 2007. Emaar Properties PJSC, the country’s biggest construction company, dropped for the first time in three days. The DFM General Index lost 1.1 percent to 1,582.23 at 1:13 p.m. in Dubai, bringing the slump this month to 12 percent. Crude closed at $72.89 a barrel in New York on Jan. 29.

“Stocks in the U.S. saw a sell down over uncertainty about the implications of a possible change in the monetary policy stance from quantitative easing to liquidity tightening,” said Ali Khan, head of cash-equity trading at Dubai-based Arqaam Capital Ltd. “We are also continuing to wait for clarity on the Dubai World restructuring. Until there is some clarity it will continue to be an overhang on the market.”