Abu Dhabi index rebounds on Adnoc Gas IPO; Dubai slips | Reuters
Abu Dhabi bourse settled higher on Friday after flagship oil firm Abu Dhabi National co, also known as Adnoc, announced an Initial Public Offering for its gas business, while Dubai index closed weaker.
Despite crude prices crashing more than 2%, the Abu Dhabi benchmark index (.FTFADGI) advanced as the announcement of Adnoc Gas IPO bolstered risk-on mood.
Among gainers, state-controlled integrated utility firm Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (TAQA) surged 4.6% after the firm received 5% stake in Adnoc's gas business ahead of its IPO.
ADNOC will sell 4% of its gas business in an IPO with ADX listing planned for March 13.
Oil prices declined on Friday on concerns of a higher rate hike by the U.S. Federal Reserve to cool inflation, with Brent crude down $2.28, or 2.68%, to $82.86 a barrel by 1124 GMT.
Two Fed officials said on Thursday the U.S. central bank likely should have lifted interest rates more than it did early this month.
Dubai's main index (.DFMGI) dropped 0.3%, snapping two sessions of gains with most sectors trading lower.
State-run utility firm Dubai Electricity And Water Authority (DEWAA.DU) slipped 1.6% and top lender Emirates NBD bank (ENBD.DU) dipped 1.1%.
Farah Mourad, a senior market analyst of XTB MENA, said Dubai was volatile and could remain exposed to potential price corrections while sentiment deteriorated.
Saudi Arabia's PIF Becomes Largest Outside Shareholder of Nintendo - Bloomberg
Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund became the largest outside shareholder of Nintendo Co. on Friday, in the latest move by the Gulf state to lower its reliance on oil.
The sovereign wealth fund now owns 8.3% of the Kyoto-based games company, according to a filing, building up a position that stood just above 6% at the start of the year. That puts PIF ahead of Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund and behind only Nintendo’s own holding, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia is making a concerted push to break into the games and esports industry. Most notably, it set up Savvy Games Group under the PIF umbrella with a $38 billion budget and longtime industry veterans in charge. Savvy this week revealed its first foray into China’s games sector with a $260 million investment in a Tencent Holdings Ltd.-backed competitive gaming organizer.
The latest Nintendo stake purchase was made for investment purposes, the filing said. A Nintendo representative said the company doesn’t comment on specific shareholders and PIF didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
“It’s tough to bet against PIF due to its size in the market,” UBS analyst Kenji Fukuyama said. “The fund may underpin Nintendo shares if it continues to increase its stake.”
Gulf IPO Rush Resumes as Adnoc Tees Up Largest Deal of 2023 - Bloomberg
The United Arab Emirates’ national oil company plans to raise $2 billion or more by listing its natural gas business in what could the largest initial public offering so far this year.
Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. will offer a 4% stake in Adnoc Gas, formed through a merger of liquefied natural gas and gas-processing arms. The IPO will start on Feb. 23 and the final offer price will be on March 3, with trading slated to start 10 days later.
The deal should give Adnoc Gas a valuation of at least $50 billion, according to people familiar with the matter. That would make it one of the world’s biggest listed gas firms and roughly on a par with Eni SpA and Occidental Petroleum Corp.
Adnoc Gas expects to pay dividends of $3.25 billion for 2023. It made record adjusted underlying earnings of $8.7 billion in the year through October 2022. The strong performance came as global gas prices soared after Russia invaded Ukraine and Europe rushed to secure supplies from other countries.
