Most Gulf markets gain on optimism over de-escalation in regional tensions | Reuters

Most Gulf markets gain on optimism over de-escalation in regional tensions | Reuters

Most stock markets in the Gulf reversed early losses to end higher on Wednesday, helped by optimism for a potential de-escalation in geopolitical tensions.

Hamas has proposed a ceasefire plan that would quiet the guns in Gaza for four-and-a-half months, during which all hostages would go free, Israel would withdraw its troops from the Gaza Strip and an agreement would be reached on an end to the war.

Saudi Arabia's benchmark index (.TASI) gained 0.8%, rising for a fifth consecutive session, led by a 2.7% rise in the country's biggest lender Saudi National Bank (1180.SE) and a 1% increase in Al Rajhi Bank (1120.SE).

However, Savola Group (2050.SE) closed 3.9% lower, after rising as much as 5.7% in early trade.

Savola, the kingdom's largest food products company, said on Wednesday it plans to distribute its entire 34.52% stake in Almarai (2280.SE), the biggest dairy firm in the Middle East, to its eligible shareholders. Almarai was down 1%.

The deal will be preceded by a 6 billion riyal ($1.60 billion) rights issue that will help strengthen the company's position, including paying off debt and enabling distribution of shares of Almarai.

Separately, Saudi Arabia's Modern Mills for Food Products said on Wednesday it is planning an initial public offering of 30% of its shares, the second flour mills company in the kingdom to seek a listing since the government privatised the industry.

In Abu Dhabi, the index (.FTFADGI) added 0.2%.

Abu Dhabi's stock market experienced a modest recovery, influenced by positive shifts in sentiment and a potential rebound in the oil market, said Yousef Ayoub, head of sales at NCM.

"The market could stabilize to a certain extent after significant losses, if conditions in oil markets improve."

Dubai's main share index (.DFMGI) gained 0.2%, with Mashreqbank (MASB.DU) advancing more than 5%. 

The Qatari benchmark (.QSI) advanced 0.9%, led by a 3.9% rise in Qatar Islamic Bank (QISB.QA).

Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index (.EGX30) leapt 2.3%, with top lender Commercial International Bank (COMI.CA) concluding 4.8% higher.

#Saudi’s Savola Group mulls listing of Panda retail

Saudi’s Savola Group mulls listing of Panda retail

Saudi Arabia’s Savola Group said it plans to list one of its subsidiaries, Panda Retail Company.

The move is part of the company’s aim to create additional value for shareholders, the Saudi-listed company said in a statement on Wednesday.

“Panda has demonstrated a healthy recovery in profitability. Its future growth strategy centers on sustaining this positive momentum by expanding its footprint and bolstering it with digital initiatives,” the statement added.

Panda owns and manages over 185 retail stores across Saudi Arabia and serves over 90 million customers annually in Saudi Arabia and Egypt.

Earlier, the company said it intends to distribute its 34.52% shareholding in regional dairy giant Almarai to eligible Savola shareholders.

The distribution will follow a 6 billion riyals ($1.6 billion) rights issue that will help strengthen the company’s position, including paying off debt.

Israel’s business ties to #UAE tested by Gaza war fury

Israel’s business ties to UAE tested by Gaza war fury

In the days after Hamas’s October 7 attack and the war that followed, Israeli entrepreneur Ron Daniel left Dubai, his home since 2021, fearing that he was “sitting on a volcano”. 

The chief executive of asset manager and financial technology company Liquidity Group flew back to the United Arab Emirates a month later after deciding these concerns were “mainly in my head”. 

Daniel is among a small band of Israelis who have been living and working in the UAE since it normalised relations with Israel four years ago. His decision to return reflects hopes among Israeli businesspeople that the US-brokered normalisation with the UAE and three other Arab states — which allows them to openly seek deals in the Middle East — can withstand the fury and anguish created by Israel’s war in Gaza. 

“The peace survived, the interest survived, the friendships survived,” said Daniel, adding that while it was “awkward” with Emirati friends at the start, “very quickly it was like, ‘it’s got nothing to do with us’.”

India Gets Cheaper LNG From #Qatar in Landmark New Supply Deal - Bloomberg

India Gets Cheaper LNG From Qatar in Landmark New Supply Deal - Bloomberg

Qatar agreed to reduce liquefied natural gas prices in a long-term contract with Indian company Petronet LNG Ltd., part of a wider effort by the Persian Gulf producer to lock-in customers for its massive output expansion.

Petronet on Tuesday renewed a contract to buy 7.5 million tons of LNG annually from Qatar from 2028 for 20 years in one of the largest ever deals for the super-chilled fuel. The country has so far found buyers for just about half of its new supply and needs to tie down others to long-term deals.

The new contract is at about a 12.2% link to Brent oil with a fixed charge of roughly 30 cents per million British thermal units, said traders who asked not to be named as the terms are private. That’s less than the current agreement, which expires in 2028, and is at a 12.67% link to Brent with a 52 cent fixed charge.

State-owned QatarEnergy didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Qatar, the world’s third-biggest LNG exporter, has signed long-term deals with companies including Shell Plc, TotalEnergies SE, Eni SpA and China’s Sinopec.

India’s LNG buyers are in talks with suppliers from Oman and the United Arab Emirates, and are demanding long-term deals at a low-12% link to Brent, the traders said. India is one of the fastest growing LNG markets, with demand expected to double by the end of the decade.

#SaudiArabia’s Modern Mills to Sell 30% Stake in Riyadh IPO - Bloomberg

Saudi Arabia’s Modern Mills to Sell 30% Stake in Riyadh IPO - Bloomberg

Saudi Arabia’s Modern Mills for Food Products Co. plans to sell a 30% stake in a Riyadh initial public offering, setting it up to be the second flour milling company to go public after the government privatized the industry.

The firm plans to sell 24.5 million shares in the listing, according to a statement on Wednesday. It hired HSBC Holdings Plc as sole financial adviser, global coordinator and lead manager and Emirates NBD Capital as joint bookrunnner and underwriter on the deal.

In recent years, Saudi Arabia split the government-controlled flour milling industry into four companies and sold them to the private sector. First Milling Co. was the first to go public in May in a $266 million IPO, while Fourth Milling Co. is working toward a listing this year, Bloomberg News has reported.

Modern Mills was previously known as Milling Company 3 and owned by the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund, its website shows. It was then acquired by a consortium of MADA Holding and United Arab Emirates-based Al Ghurair Foods in 2021.

Modern Mills is the second Saudi company to IPO this year, after Avalon Pharma started bookbuilding for its listing of as much as 492 million riyals ($131 million) last month.

The Middle East’s biggest broadcaster debuted in Riyadh on Jan. 8 after a $222 million IPO and has seen its shares more than double since, in a sign investor appetite is still strong in the region.

Al Rajhi Bank and Saudi National Bank have been appointed as receiving agents for the individual investors tranche on the Modern Mills deal.

Exclusive: #UAE wealth fund plans $4-5 billion in investments via India's new finance hub - sources | Reuters

Exclusive: UAE wealth fund plans $4-5 billion in investments via India's new finance hub - sources | Reuters

Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), the largest sovereign wealth fund in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), is setting up a $4-5 billion fund to invest in India through a tax-neutral finance hub in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's home state of Gujarat, according to two sources with direct knowledge of the matter.

The regulatory authority for financial services at Gujarat International Finance Tec-City, or GIFT City, has granted in-principle approval to ADIA to set up the fund, sources said, declining to be identified as they are not authorised to speak to media.

ADIA's intention to establish a presence in the hub was first announced last July in a joint statement, opens new tab by India and UAE. The amount of investment planned and the approval from the regulatory authority has not been previously reported.

A spokesperson for ADIA declined comment. An email to the International Financial Services Authority (IFSCA), which regulates financial services in the hub, was not answered.

#Dubai tourist numbers grow to over 17mln in 2023, highest reported by the emirate

Dubai tourist numbers grow to over 17mln in 2023, highest reported by the emirate

Dubai has achieved its highest growth in tourism numbers, reporting 17.15 million international overnight visitors in 2023, according to the emirate’s Department of Economy and Tourism (DET).

This represented a 19.4% year-on-year growth over the 14.36 million tourist arrivals in 2022.

The surge in tourist numbers also beat the pre COVID-19 record of 16.73 million visitors recorded in 2019.

Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Dubai Crown Prince and Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai, attributed this growth to the emirate facilitating “meaningful public-private partnerships” that have had a “transformative impact on tourism development in the emirate.”

“Dubai’s ability to constantly generate diverse and refreshingly novel travel and tourism experiences catering to a wide range of visitors has been a key factor behind this exceptional performance,” Sheikh Hamdan added.

The tourism performance contributed to Dubai’s 3.3% GDP growth in the first nine months of 2023. Accommodation and food services activities witnessed a 11% growth.

#AbuDhabi-listed Multiply 2023 FY net profit plummets to $150.2mln

Abu Dhabi-listed Multiply 2023 FY net profit plummets to $150.2mln

Multiply Group, the Abu Dhabi-based investment holding firm, saw a steep drop in its 2023 full-year net profit attributable to 337.8 million UAE dirhams ($91.9 million) from AED18.56 billion in 2022, which the company said was brought on by ‘unrealised fair value changes on market volatility’.

The net profit for FY2023, excluding fair value changes, was reported at AED1.1 billion.

Group revenue increased by 15% year-on-year (YoY) to AED1.29 billion in 2023, up from AED1.13 billion the previous year, driven by growth across four verticals (+5% YoY) and the consolidation of Media 247 under the media vertical and each of Fisio and The Juice Spa and Salon under Beauty & Wellness vertical, the company said in its earnings statement on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange.

The group, which owns Emirates Driving Company, maintained a cash balance of AED1.11 billion.

Under Multiply+, the public market portfolio closed the year with a valuation of AED32.9 billion, compared to an initial investment of AED15.5 billion.

Samia Bouazza, Group CEO and Managing Director: “The year was also marked with strategic investments, where we completed the acquisition of a majority stake in Media 247, which closed the year with AED79 million in profit; and under Multiply+ arm, we invested AED367 million for a minority stake in EIG’s Breakwater Energy, which offers a strong dividend profile, as we continue to focus on our commitment to increase shareholder returns.”

Mideast Stocks: Major Gulf markets fall on regional tensions

Mideast Stocks: Major Gulf markets fall on regional tensions

Major stock markets in the Gulf fell in early trade on Wednesday on rising tensions in the region, although rising oil prices provided some support.

U.S., Qatari and Egyptian mediators prepared a diplomatic push to bridge differences between Israel and Hamas on a ceasefire plan for Gaza, after the Palestinian group responded to a proposal for an extended pause in fighting and hostage releases.

Traders have been following the situation in the Middle East, especially attacks on shipping by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in the crucial Red Sea that have disrupted traffic through the Suez Canal, the fastest sea route between Asia and Europe and one that carries nearly 12% of global trade.

Houthis said on Tuesday they had fired missiles at two vessels in the Red Sea, causing damage to the ships.

Saudi Arabia's benchmark index dropped 0.2%, hit by a 1% fall in oil giant Saudi Aramco.

On the other hand, Savola Group advanced more than 5%, after announcing plans to distribute its entire 34.52% stake in regional dairy firm Almarai to its eligible shareholders.

The deal will be preceded by a 6-billion-riyal ($1.60-billion) rights issue that will help strengthen Savola's position, including paying off debt and enabling distribution of shares of Almarai, the biggest dairy firm in the Middle East.

Shares of Almarai were down 4%.

The Qatari benchmark eased 0.2%, hit by a 1.9% fall in the Gulf's biggest lender Qatar National Bank.

Dubai's main share index lost 0.2%, with toll operator Salik Co dropping 1.2%.

In Abu Dhabi, the index gained 0.2%.

Oil prices - which fuel the Gulf's economy - rose for a third day after U.S. crude inventories grew less than expected and a cut in the forecast for output growth in the U.S., the world's biggest producer, eased concerns about potential oversupply.