Friday 10 November 2023

Oil Forecasters See #SaudiArabia Extending Crude Supply Cut Into 2024 - Bloomberg

Oil Forecasters See Saudi Arabia Extending Crude Supply Cut Into 2024 - Bloomberg

As oil prices languish near a three-month low, forecasters are already predicting that Saudi Arabia won’t sit idle.

The OPEC+ leader is likely to extend its 1 million barrel-a-day supply cut — introduced over the summer — into next year, according to analysts at UBS Group AG, FGE, Commerzbank AG and Eurasia Group. RBC Capital Markets says it looks increasingly likely.

Extension “is now very probable, given that the oil market would otherwise risk seeing a high supply surplus in the first half of next year,” Commerzbank’s Carsten Fritsch said in a report on Friday.

Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman insisted this week that global oil demand remains healthy, blaming Brent crude’s slide to $80 a barrel on a “ploy” by speculators. World inventories are tight, and data from top consumers like the US, China and India appears robust.

Nonetheless, with no impact on Middle East oil exports from the conflict between Israel and Hamas, traders are shifting focus to worrying macroeconomic indicators, like the disappointing trade figures released by China this week.

Prolonged action from the Saudis, and presumably their fellow OPEC+ leader Russia, ought to limit further price downside, the analysts say. The 23-nation OPEC+ alliance is due to meet on Nov. 26.

If that doesn’t suffice, RBC’s commodities strategist Helima Croft suggests that Riyadh could squeeze supplies further to scare off short sellers. “We see no indication that the Saudi energy minister is prepared to throw in the towel,” she writes.

In fact, rising supplies from other producers like Guyana, Brazil and the US may mean the kingdom’s strategy faces a very long haul: S&P Global Inc. believes the Saudis will be forced to continue the cuts all the way into 2025.

Emaar Properties boosts #Dubai, #AbuDhabi rebounds | Reuters

Emaar Properties boosts Dubai, Abu Dhabi rebounds | Reuters


Stock markets in the United Arab Emirates closed higher on Friday, with Dubai's index boosted by a surge in blue-chip developer Emaar properties (EMAR.DU) and its construction unit Emaar Development (EMAARDEV.DU).

Dubai's main index (.DFMGI) advanced 1%, boosted by a 4.4% surge in Emaar Properties and a 3.9% gain in Emaar Development.

Emaar Properties and its construction unit reported a 42% and 43% increase in their nine-month profits respectively on higher retail sales and rise in real estate demand.

"Strong corporate earnings helped the Dubai main index snap out of two consecutive days of price corrections," Ahmed Negm, head of market research MENA at XS.com said. "However, the market could continue to see some risks despite its rebound."

The Dubai and Abu Dhabi indexes posted weekly gains of 1% and 0.4% respectively according to LSEG data.

Abu Dhabi's benchmark index (.FTFADGI) settled 0.2% higher, supported by a 4.9% jump in Adnoc Distribution (ADNOCDIST.AD), while IHC-owned conglomerate Alpha Dhabi Holding (ALPHADHABI.AD) was up 4.3%.

Adnoc Distribution registered a 9% growth in its third-quarter net profit to 835 million dirhams ($227.34 million), beating market expectations.

Alternative asset manager Investcorp Holding priced the initial public offering of its investment unit at 2.30 dirhams a share ($0.6262), giving a valuation of 5.04 billion dirhams.

Oil prices - the key component of the Gulf's economy - jumped 1% on Friday on concerns of supply disruption in the Middle East.

Brent crude rose 1% or $0.83 to $80.84 a barrel by 1117 GMT.

Investcorp Prices #AbuDhabi IPO at Top of Range - Bloomberg

Investcorp Prices Abu Dhabi IPO at Top of Range - Bloomberg

Investcorp Capital Plc’s Abu Dhabi initial public offering raised 1.66 billion dirhams ($451 million) after the deal priced at the top of the range and was upsized by 12%.

The investment vehicle backed by Investcorp Holdings, the Middle East’s biggest alternative asset manager, priced 720 million shares at 2.30 dirhams apiece, according to a statement on Friday. The pricing values Investcorp Capital at 5 billion dirhams and implies a dividend yield of 8.4% for the year ending next June.

The company said the offering was heavily oversubscribed with strong demand from international and regional institutional investors. However, it didn’t disclose how many times the IPO was oversubscribed, as many other firms have done in the region.

Investcorp sold 398.5 million shares in the offering, while the company sold 321.5 million shares. About $250 million of the offering was taken up by a cornerstone investor, a special purpose vehicle including about 160 investors from across the Gulf, including existing Investcorp clients.

Investcorp Capital’s shares will start trading on Nov. 17.

Russia-Ukraine War: EU Says #UAE to Restrict Key Exports to Russia Used for War - Bloomberg

Russia-Ukraine War: EU Says UAE to Restrict Key Exports to Russia Used for War - Bloomberg

The European Union’s executive told member states that the United Arab Emirates has agreed to restrict the re-export to Russia of sensitive goods used for military purposes in Ukraine.

The European Commission briefed EU ambassadors on the development this week, according to people familiar with the matter. Turkey is considering a similar measure, the people said.

The moves would cover direct re-exports and would signify a win for Ukraine’s allies, which are trying to cut off the flow of military goods to Russia. Bloomberg reported previously that the UAE had been considering introducing the controls.

The EU has in recent months ramped up efforts to enforce its trade sanctions, focusing especially on clamping down on the Kremlin’s ability to get its hands on a high priority list of goods covering dozens of technologies and components used in weapons found in Ukraine or needed to produce them.

Middle East conflict: Have markets really moved on from fear? | Reuters

Middle East conflict: Have markets really moved on from fear? | Reuters

After Hamas' incursion into Israel on Oct. 7 jolted world markets, an oil surge has reversed, global stocks are now broadly flat and bets on a humanitarian crisis spiraling into a wider regional conflict seem to have faded.

Israel agreed on Thursday to pause operations in northern Gaza for four hours a day according to the U.S White House but risks remain and heavy trading in a range of asset classes from weapons stocks to niche Middle East debt insurance suggest markets have not moved on from fear quite yet.

As investors debate a range of scenarios, here are some assets flashing warning signals and those that may have wild swings ahead.

#AbuDhabi ADNOC Distribution's Q3 net profit up 9%; beats estimate

Abu Dhabi ADNOC Distribution's Q3 net profit up 9%; beats estimate

Abu Dhabi’s ADNOC Distribution reported a 9% increase year-on-year (YoY) in Q3 2023 attributable net profit to 835 million dirhams ($227 million) on higher fuel sales and contributions from global operations.

The net profit easily beat analysts’ mean estimate of AED670.50 million, according to LSEG data.

In a statement to the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) on Friday, the UAE's largest fuel retailer said revenue for the quarter was AED8.94 billion versus AED8.55 billion in the year-ago period.

In Q3, the company sold total fuel volumes of 2,03 million litres, up 21% YoY. In the GCC markets fuel volumes sold reached 3,578 million litres, up 54% YoY.

Bader Saeed Al Lamki, CEO of ADNOC Distribution, said the results marked one of the strongest quarterly performances since the company's IPO in 2017. "Our impressive third-quarter results are a testament to the continuous growth of our business as we witness strong momentum across both our fuel and non-fuel retail segments."

For the nine-month period, ADNOC Distribution posted a 17% profit drop to AED1.92 billion.