Dubai Leads Gulf Shares Lower on Global Drop; Shuaa, Aldar Fall

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Dubai’s index slid the most in almost two weeks, leading declines in the Gulf, as crude prices tumbled to the lowest level in seven weeks and investors awaited details of a new oil field off the emirate’s coast.

Shuaa Capital PSC, the biggest investment bank in the United Arab Emirates, slumped the most in two weeks after reporting a fourth-quarter loss of 154.3 million dirhams ($42 million). Aldar Properties PJSC, Abu Dhabi’s biggest real-estate developer dropped the most since Jan. 26 after the company said Khadem Al Qubaisi resigned from its board. The DFM General Index lost 2 percent to 1,630.81 and Abu Dhabi’s ADX General Index lost 0.9 percent.

“There is still an atmosphere of risk adversity and so we see a magnified effect on any sell-off, especially in the U.A.E. where liquidity is close to record lows,” said Julian Bruce, director of equity sales at EFG-Hermes Holding SAE, the biggest publicly traded Arab investment bank. “There is no news on Dubai World, no disclosure regarding the size of the new oil discovery so there is no reason to buy.”