#Dubai Stocks Lead Mideast Selloff Amid Travel Curbs: Inside EM - Bloomberg

Dubai Stocks Lead Mideast Selloff Amid Travel Curbs: Inside EM - Bloomberg

Most Middle East stocks fell, with shares in Dubai leading losses, as increased travel restrictions added to pessimism over vaccine rollouts sweeping global equity markets.

Dubai and Abu Dhabi’s gauges dropped 1.3% and 0.6%, respectively, as of noon local time. Saudi Arabia’s main index retreated 0.6% as Saudi Basic Industries Corporation fell as much as 1% even after 2020 profit beat estimates. Qatari stocks declined 0.5%.

The U.K. announced on the weekend it was banning direct passenger flights from the United Arab Emirates to stop the spread of a new virus strain originally identified in South Africa. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabian authorities delayed the reopening of the country’s borders.

Global stocks slumped last week, with the S&P 500 tumbling 1.9% on Friday, as bidding by retail traders for heavily-shorted U.S. stocks fanned speculation hedge funds would have to reduce their market exposure, while concern over the deployment of coronavirus vaccines sapped risk appetite. A gauge tracking emerging-market shares posted the biggest weekly drop since March.

Shares in Dubai had been recovering from a virus-triggered selloff amid prospects of a pick-up in tourism, one of the main pillars of the emirate’s economy. Sunday’s declines came even as the UAE announced plans to offer citizenship to select foreigners, the first Gulf nation to formalize a process aimed at giving expatriates a bigger stake in the economy.

Though the decision is a positive one for markets, more details are needed, Arqaam Capital’s head of equity research Jaap Meijer said in an interview with Bloomberg Television.