A positive start to the week was seen for UAE equity markets with the Dubai benchmark index adding 0.6% whilst the Abu Dhabi equivalent advanced by just over 0.3%.
- Ooredoo +10.3%
- Space42 +5.4%
- Americana Restaurants -4.5%
Ooredoo was the biggest riser of the large caps, closing 10.3% higher. As we have noted before the Abu Dhabi listing of the stock sees thin trade but there have been a couple of key product development announces in the last 24hrs, including a 5G rollout in Qatar and next steps with its Fibre in the Gulf subsea cabling project.
Space42 added 5.4%. There’s no news out but interest in the stock has been elevated for the last two sessions following last week’s partnership updates. With questions being asked over the politics of Elon Musk’s StarLink system, other low earth orbit satellite communications networks could well be finding more popularity.
Americana Restaurants traded 5.4% lower with the company’s stock now eyeing a return to the lows seen at the end of last year. Again there’s no specific news here although a report published at the weekend did highlight the robust growth forecasts for the sector in Saudi Arabia. However with US action against Yemen having been increased and concerns over the Hamas ceasefire rising, there’s the potential for local sentiment to again tip against the already damaged brand.
