MIDEAST STOCKS #AbuDhabi outperforms Gulf stocks as IHC extends surge | Reuters

MIDEAST STOCKS Abu Dhabi outperforms Gulf stocks as IHC extends surge | Reuters

Abu Dhabi stocks outperformed Gulf markets on Monday, led by a 9% surge in the shares of the International Holding Company (IHC) conglomerate, which benefited from the listing of a subsidiary.

The Abu Dhabi index (.ADI) advanced 1.2%, while International Holding (IHC.AD) was up 3.4%, having jumped 15% on Sunday. IHC shares are up around 170% this year.

IHC, now Abu Dhabi's most valuable listed company, gained after the listing of Alpha Dhabi Holding (ALPHADHABI.AD), in which IHC holds a 45% stake and which operates in the healthcare, construction and hospitality sectors. read more .

Alpha Dhabi leapt over 8%.

Saudi Arabia's benchmark index (.TASI) rose too, adding 0.2%, helped by a 0.4% gain in Al Rajhi Bank (1120.SE) and a 0.5% increase in petrochemical maker Saudi Basic Industries (2010.SE).

Separately, Saudi Fransi Capital has started a book building process for Tanmiah Food Co's initial public offering, setting a price range of 59 riyals ($15.73) to 67 riyals per share, the investment banking group said on Sunday.

But Dubai's main share index (.DMFGI) eased 0.2%, hit by a 0.5% fall in blue-chip developer Emaar Properties (EMAR.DU). Emaar shed some of the 1% gain it made on Sunday, after S&P Global raised its outlook to stable from negative.

S&P attributed the outlook revision to better momentum in Dubai's residential real estate, with prices rising in some areas for the first time since 2015.

The Qatari benchmark (.QSI) lost 0.2%, with petrochemical maker Industries Qatar (IQCD.QA) falling 0.6% and Qatar Fuel Company (QFLS.QA) dropping 1.3%.

However, the index's losses were limited by telecoms firm Ooredoo (ORDS.QA), which rose 1.3%. Ooredoo shares retreated 3.8% on Sunday after the imposition of a 3.5 million riyal ($950,000) financial sanction for violating instructions issued by the authority.