Banking shares took a hit on trading at the open after a combination of bad news from the sector was being digested by investors.
Shuaa Capital declined as much as 3.2 per cent at 10:10am, after the UAE investment bank announced that its loss widened in the fourth quarter. Shares of Shuaa were trading at Dh1.19 after the company disclosed a net loss of Dh186.7m in the fourth quarter from Dh154.3m in the year earlier period, according to a statement to the Dubai bourse.
The investment bank's chief financial officer, David Deards, who joined in March 2010 left the company as the results were released. “Our CFO is currently on unpaid leave and we are seeking to identify a replacement for his position. In the interim, his role has been taken up by other senior members of the firm,” Shuaa Capital said in a statement.
The Dubai Financial Market General Index declined 0.2 per cent to 1602.09. Banking stocks declined 0.2 per cent to 956.08. Provisions for bad loans hit a record high in December, according to central bank data posted on Monday. Provisioning rose 7.5 per cent for the month compared with November to reach Dh44.3 bn. Compared with December 2009, provisions were up more than 35 per cent.
The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange General Index lost 0.2 per cent 2687.61. Banking shares declined 0.8 per cent, led by National Bank of Abu Dhabi. Shares of the emirate's biggest lender lost 1.6 per cent to Dh11.80. First Gulf Bank, the emirate's third biggest lender lost 1.3 per cent to Dh18.05.
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Elsewhere in the region, Kuwait's measure remained unchanged at 6733.50. Bahrain's index lost 0.2 per cent to 1468.58. Oman's index gained 0.4 per cent to 6920.15. Qatar's index remained unchanged at 8868.30. The Saudi Tadawul was trading 0.4 per cent higher to 6616.41.
'Worse than a prison sentence'
Marie Byrne, a counsellor who volunteers at the UAE government's mental health crisis helpline, said the ordeal the crew had been through would take time to overcome.
“It was worse than a prison sentence, where at least someone can deal with a set amount of time incarcerated," she said.
“They were living in perpetual mystery as to how their futures would pan out, and what that would be.
“Because of coronavirus, the world is very different now to the one they left, that will also have an impact.
“It will not fully register until they are on dry land. Some have not seen their young children grow up while others will have to rebuild relationships.
“It will be a challenge mentally, and to find other work to support their families as they have been out of circulation for so long. Hopefully they will get the care they need when they get home.”
Name: Brendalle Belaza
From: Crossing Rubber, Philippines
Arrived in the UAE: 2007
Favourite place in Abu Dhabi: NYUAD campus
Favourite photography style: Street photography
Favourite book: Harry Potter
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 247hp at 6,500rpm
Torque: 370Nm from 1,500-3,500rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 7.8L/100km
Price: from Dh94,900
On sale: now
MATCH INFO
Champions League quarter-final, first leg
Ajax v Juventus, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE)
Match on BeIN Sports
Founders: Abdulmajeed Alsukhan, Turki Bin Zarah and Abdulmohsen Albabtain.
Based: Riyadh
Offices: UAE, Vietnam and Germany
Founded: September, 2020
Number of employees: 70
Sector: FinTech, online payment solutions
Funding to date: $116m in two funding rounds
Investors: Checkout.com, Impact46, Vision Ventures, Wealth Well, Seedra, Khwarizmi, Hala Ventures, Nama Ventures and family offices
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Sarfira
Director: Sudha Kongara Prasad
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Radhika Madan, Paresh Rawal
Rating: 2/5
Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
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India cancels school-leaving examinations
War 2
Director: Ayan Mukerji
Stars: Hrithik Roshan, NTR, Kiara Advani, Ashutosh Rana
Rating: 2/5
