UAE bourses start day in positive mood

Amid a stream of positive news on the domestic front, including logistics company Aramex announcing expansion, UAE bourses started the day with lively trading.

UAE markets moved upwards this morning as a stream of positive domestic news strengthened trading.

The Dubai Financial Market General Index added 0.3 per cent to 1706.16, led by Dubai based logistics courier, Aramex.

The company announced several moves including raising its stake in its Turkey subsidiary to 100 per cent, acquiring major stakes in Avanti in Malaysia and Expo Express in Bangladesh, and also forming a joint venture to launch advance logistics in Vietnam.

Shares of Aramex added 3 per cent to Dh2.06 a share, the most actively traded stock on the Dubai bourse so far. According to broker reports, foreign ownership in shares of the company have reached 48.8 per cent. The maximum for Aramex is 49 per cent.

The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange General Index moved up 0.5 per cent to 2754.60. Aldar Properties, developer of the Yas Marina Circuit and Ferrari World, added 2.8 per cent to Dh1.80. Sorouh Real Estate, Abu Dhabi's second biggest developer added 1.1 per cent to Dh1.13.

The dollar dropped against the euro and yen, as benchmark Treasury yields dropped from their highest level in six months. The greenback fell to 1.3308 per euro as of 2.25 pm in Tokyo ahead of the Federal Reserve meeting scheduled to take place on Dec 14 to discuss further Treasury purchases.

Elsewhere in the region, Kuwait's measure dipped 0.1 per cent to 6848.40. Bahrain's measure added 0.2 per cent to 1433.04. Oman's bourse gained 0.3 per cent to 6717.26. Qatar's measure added 1.7 per cent to 8779.49. The Saudi Tadawul All-Share Index was closed for the day.