Monday 20 April 2020

MIDEAST STOCKS-Financial stocks weigh on Gulf amid low oil prices - Reuters

MIDEAST STOCKS-Financial stocks weigh on Gulf amid low oil prices - Reuters:

Major stock markets in the Gulf traded lower on Monday, pressured by banking shares, in response to a fresh drop in oil prices as demand shrinks due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Brent was down 90 cents, or 3.2%, to $27.18 a barrel.

In Dubai, the index declined 2.1%, with its largest lender Emirates NBD losing 2.4%. The bank posted a net profit of 2.08 billion dirhams ($566.29 million) in first quarter, down from 2.74 billion dirhams in the same period a year earlier. On a quarterly basis, however, net profit improved by 3%.

The drop in net profit was due to higher provisions the bank took in anticipation of the impact of the new coronavirus outbreak on credit conditions.

No comments:

Post a Comment