Dubai Shares Retreat as MSCI Keeps U.A.E. as Frontier Market - BusinessWeek

Dubai shares declined for the first time in four days, leading a drop in the Gulf, as index provider MSCI Inc. kept the United Arab Emirates and Qatar as frontier markets, citing the countries’ dual account structures.

The DFM General Index lost 1.4 percent, the most since June 6, to 1,542.07, led by Emaar Properties PJSC, builder of the world’s tallest skyscraper. Air Arabia PJSC retreated 1.6 percent. Dubai’s measure had gained 5.1 percent in the previous three days. Abu Dhabi’s gauge dropped 0.4 percent and the Bloomberg GCC 200 Index slid 1 percent.

The MSCI decision not to upgrade the U.A.E. and Qatar to emerging markets “was reflected negatively as most foreign buying over the previous three days was in anticipation of the announcement,” said Mohammed Ali Yasin, chief executive officer at Shuaa Securities in Abu Dhabi.