Etisalat shares rose for the first time in six days, helping to boost Abu Dhabi’s benchmark index.
The telecoms operator ended the day up 1.4 per cent at Dh13.60. Its shares had fallen 4.3 per cent earlier this week after it said on Sunday that its second-quarter results would be hurt by accounting changes at its Saudi subsidiary Mobily.
The buoyancy of Etisalat shares helped Abu Dhabi’s benchmark index to close up 0.63 per cent yesterday, making it the best performing bourse in the GCC region for the day.
Drake and Scull International registered the highest gains of the day in Dubai, surging 11.46 per cent after announcing the removal of the 49 per cent ownership threshold for GCC investors.
However, Dubai’s headline index ended the day barely changed, closing down 0.1 per cent at 4,088.82.
The bourse announced that Amlak Finance shares would be included in the index from Sunday, exactly one month after its shares began trading again after an absence of more than six years.
The Islamic lender’s shares, which will have a weighting of 2 per cent on the index, closed down 5 per cent yesterday at Dh2.65.
Elsewhere in the region, Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul exchange announced it would close for the Eid Al Fitr holidays on July 16, with trading resuming on July 22.
The Tadawul’s benchmark index ended the day up 0.34 per cent at 9,135.43.
jeverington@thenational.ae
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