Gulf stocks may have soft tone but Abu Dhabi’s Aldar has strong Q2

Gulf stock markets may have a soft tone Tuesday as oil prices and Asian bourses fell, though Abu Dhabi may outperform after strong earnings from its top real estate firm.

Brent oil slid further to a three-month closing low of $42.14 a barrel on Monday while MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan is down 0.4 percent.

Abu Dhabi’s Aldar Properties reported a 9.7 percent rise in second-quarter net profit to 657.4 million dirhams ($179 million), beating SICO Bahrain’s forecast of 384.1 million dirhams, but there is very little other positive corporate news in the region.

Kuwait said it would increase gasoline prices as much as 73 percent from September as it cut energy subsidies. While that is good for state finances, it may dampen consumer spending, as similar steps have done elsewhere in the Gulf.

In Egypt, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said in a speech on Monday that tough measures would be needed to turn the economy around – a reminder that the $12 billion International Monetary Fund loan which Cairo is seeking will not necessarily improve business conditions in the immediate term. Measures are expected to include subsidy cuts, tax reforms and privatisations.

Source: Reuters