Most Gulf markets fall as risk of Fed rate hike rises | Reuters

Most Gulf markets fall as risk of Fed rate hike rises | Reuters

Most stock markets in the Gulf ended lower on Monday after U.S. jobs data pointed to a tight labour market and heightened expectations the U.S. Federal Reserve will raise interest rates at its meeting next month.

Saudi Arabia's benchmark index (.TASI) fell 0.6%, hit by a 1.6% fall in Al Rajhi Bank (1120.SE) and a 0.8% decrease in Retal Urban Development Co (4322.SE).

A historically low U.S. unemployment rate and rising wages will likely keep the Fed on track to raise rates by a quarter of a percentage point next month, as risks of a financial crisis ease and concerns about inflation remain high.

Most Gulf currencies are pegged to the U.S. dollar, and Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates usually mirror any monetary policy change in the United States.

After hitting a peak for this year, the Saudi market could record some price corrections as traders move to secure their gains, Daniel Takieddine, CEO MENA at BDSwiss, said.

He added "strong fundamentals" could lead the index to later rebound.

In Qatar, the index (.QSI) eased 0.2%, with Commercial Bank (COMB.QA) losing 1.8%.

Qatar National Bank (QNBK.QA), the Gulf's largest lender by assets, edged 0.3% higher after reporting a rise in first-quarter earnings.

The Abu Dhabi index (.FTFADGI) added 0.4%.

Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index (.EGX30) gained 0.6%, as El Sewedy Electric Co (SWDY.CA) advanced more than 5%.

Egypt's annual urban consumer inflation rate in March climbed to 32.7% year-on-year, just shy of an all-time record, and up from 31.9% in February, data from the country's statistics agency CAPMAS showed on Monday.

Takkieddine said a less-than-expected rise in inflation had buoyed the Egyptian bourse, but he said the level was still high and that had contributed to international investors' concerns, meaning they could "maintain their selling trend".

GCC economies likely to grow at 3.9% in 2023 – Mubasher Capital

GCC economies likely to grow at 3.9% in 2023 – Mubasher Capital

The six GCC economies are expected to grow at 3.9% throughout 2023, which marks twice the pace of the estimated world growth of 1.7%, according to a recent report by Mubasher Capital.

As governments plan to boost the growth of their non-oil sector, four out of the six economies registered fiscal surplus in 2022.

Mubasher Capital added that the stocks trading on the GCC stock markets offer a broad diversification under 11 sectors.

Furthermore, there are 368 out of the 668 GCC companies which disburse cash dividends that are sufficiently distributed among sectors.

“Cash dividends are almost tax-free in the majority of GCC markets and capital gains are completely tax-free,” Mubasher Capital stated.

#Qatar National Bank Q1 profit rises 7% | Reuters

Qatar National Bank Q1 profit rises 7% | Reuters

Qatar National Bank (QNB) (QNBK.QA), the Gulf's largest lender by assets, said on Monday that its first-quarter profit rose 7% as revenue from a range of sources increased despite turbulence in global markets.

Net profit for the three months ended March 31 rose to 3.9 billion riyals ($1.07 billion), up from 3.6 billion riyals in the first quarter of 2022 and beating a median analyst estimate of 3.77 billion riyals, Refinitiv data showed.

Total assets stood at 1.18 trillion riyals at the end of the quarter, up 6% from the same period last year, QNB said in a bourse filing.

Loans and advances grew 6% to 810 billion riyals, while QNB's loan to deposit ratio was 97.9% and its non-performing loans ratio was 2.9%, up from 2.3% a year before.

First #AbuDhabi Bank open to acquisitions to spur growth, CEO says

First Abu Dhabi Bank open to acquisitions to spur growth, CEO says

FAB is looking to organically grow its core businesses, says Hana Al Rostamani, chief executive
of First Abu Dhabi Bank. Victor Besa / The National

First Abu Dhabi Bank is open to acquisition opportunities in the Middle East and North Africa and in markets beyond as long as the deals make commercial sense and create value for the UAE’s biggest lender by assets, its chief executive said.

FAB, as the Abu Dhabi-listed lender is known, is also open to acquiring international banks if an opportunity presents itself, as it continues to expand its footprint in markets across continents, Hana Al Rostamani told The National.

“If it adds value, certainly we will look into it,” she said of a potential acquisition of an international lender. She, however, declined to say if FAB is actively pursuing a deal at the moment.

The lender only looks at opportunities that allow it to “quickly build our portfolio ... enter a new market or enhance our platform and that is something we continuously opportunistically look into”, she said.

“So essentially, when we look at any acquisition, we broadly look at these three areas and where does [the deal] fit within those three spectrums. That really adds up [to] our overall strategy.”

#UAE's e& takes $400 million majority stake in ride-hailer Careem's Super App | Reuters

UAE's e& takes $400 million majority stake in ride-hailer Careem's Super App | Reuters

Emirates Telecommunications Group Company (EAND.AD) has agreed to take a 50.3% stake in a super app managed by Careem, Uber Technologies' (UBER.N) Middle East subsidiary, in a transaction valued at $400 million, e& said in a filing on Monday.

The Super App will be managed by Careem founders Mudassir Sheikha and Magnus Olsson, said the company, formerly known as Etisalat Group and now called e&.

The ride-hailing business will be separated from the Careem Super App business and will be fully owned by Uber, but will still be available on the super app.

The deal will be financed from e&'s existing cash balance, and subject to regulatory approvals, customary closing conditions and administrative procedures, e& said in the filing.

Reuters reported last month that talks with e& were at an advanced stage and a deal could be announced soon.

Major Gulf markets mixed in early trade on odds of Fed rate hike | Reuters

Major Gulf markets mixed in early trade on odds of Fed rate hike | Reuters

Most stock markets in the Gulf were mixed in early trade on Monday after U.S. jobs data pointed to a tight labour market, firming up expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve will raise interest rates at its meeting next month.

Saudi Arabia's benchmark index (.TASI) dropped 0.3%, weighed down by a 0.8% fall in Retal Urban Development Co SJSC (4322.SE) and a 0.7% decrease in Al Rajhi Banking & Investment Corp SJSC (1120.SE).

A historically low U.S. unemployment rate and rising wages will likely keep the Fed on track to raise rates by a quarter of a percentage point next month, as risks of a financial crisis ease while concerns about inflation remain high.

Most Gulf currencies are pegged to the U.S. dollar, and Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates usually mirror any monetary policy change in the United States.

Dubai's main share index (.DFMGI) eased 0.1%, hit by a 1.1% decline in top lender Emirates NBD (ENBD.DU).

In Abu Dhabi, the index (.FTFADGI) added 0.3%, with Emirates Telecommunications Group (EAND.AD) rising 0.7%.

The telecom firm has agreed to take a 50.3% stake in a super app managed by Careem, Uber Technologies Inc's (UBER.N) Middle East subsidiary, in a transaction valued at $400 million, the company said in a filing on Monday.

Emirates Telecommunications said the transaction fits into its own ambitions to scale up consumer digital offerings and would allow the company to take advantage of the app to boost the growth of its consumer digital services.

The Qatari benchmark (.QSI) edged 0.1% higher, supported by a 0.4% increase in the Gulf's biggest lender Qatar National Bank QPSC (QNBK.QA) ahead of its quarterly earnings announcement.