Air Arabia stocks flying high in UAE

MARKETS UPDATE: Air Arabia's expansion plans helped lift the stock at the open, as the chief executive said the company wants to add another 20 hubs across the region.

Air Arabia was one of the second most traded stock in the UAE this morning as the company's chief executive said it was targeting 20 more hubs throughout the region.

Shares in the company rose 0.7 per cent to 85 fils on the Abu Dhabi exchange with more than 2.2 million shares changed hands.

Dana Gas was the most actively traded stock in Dubai as it gained 1.3 per cent to 76 fils and more than 5.4 million shares were traded.

National Bank of Abu Dhabi and Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank were also top gainers as the stocks rose 0.4 to Dh12.05 and 1.3 per cent to Dh3.06.

Investment company Waha Capital moved higher as traders bought into the positive set of results released this morning. The company posted a 15 per cent increase in net profit for 2010.

It gained 3.75 per cent to 83 fils. The company has risen 6.4 per cent in the last two days.

Local markets mimicked a rally elsewhere in the world as the Dubai Financial Market (DFM) General Index edged 0.08 per cent to 1,631.43 points and the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) gained 0.26 per cent to 2,681.16 points.

Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 108.68 points, or 0.92 per cent, at 11980.52.

During the session, the measure climbed as high as 11982.94, its highest intraday level since June 20, 2008.

Asian stocks are up today, with the Nikkei gaining more than 1 per cent, on optimism that companies will report strong earnings, while the euro held near a two-month high.

US markets also rose overnight, with the Dow gaining 0.9 per cent, extending an eight-week rally but curbing interest in commodities.

Gold declined to a two-month low, losing 0.3 per cent to $1,330.22 an ounce, the lowest level since November 16.