Abu Dhabi Shares Retreat Most Since March on Etisalat, Europe - Bloomberg

Abu Dhabi’s benchmark index fell the most in almost five months as Emirates Telecommunications Corp. declined amid concern its smaller rival is increasing market share and European stocks retreated.

Etisalat, as Emirates Telecommunications Corp. is known, dropped to the lowest level in almost two months. Construction- supplies maker Arkan Building Materials Co. (ARKAN) lost for the third time in four days. Abu Dhabi’s ADX General Index (ADSMI) fell 1.2 percent, the most since March 2, to 2,641.41 at the 2:00 p.m. close in the emirate. The measure has dropped 2.3 percent this month. The Bloomberg GCC 200 Index (BGCC200), which tracks the biggest 200 companies in the Persian Gulf region, declined 0.5 percent at 2:11 p.m. in Riyadh.

The shares of Etisalat have tumbled 6.8 percent since it said July 18 that second-quarter profit declined 15 percent, missing analysts’ estimates. The United Arab Emirates’ second phone company, Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Co. (DU), or Du, is forecast to report a 54 percent jump in second-quarter profit next month, according to the mean estimate of three analysts on Bloomberg. Du has fallen 0.3 percent since Etisalat’s earnings.

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