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Dubai: Dubai's index closed lower for a third trading day, easing about 1.5 per cent as all traded stocks decline on retail selling.
Emaar Properties dropped 1.86 per cent and Dubai Financial Market 2.35 per cent. The index shed 1.48 per cent to 5,427.45 points.
"We are in a retail-driven market, which will likely be flat this month. Second-quarter earnings have already been factored into the share prices," said Amr Diab, head of sales at EFG-Hermes.
Abu Dhabi's index closed higher as Aabar Petroleum Investments surged for a fifth trading day. Aabar soared 9.3 per cent, extending five days of gains to more than 30 per cent. The firm's board is set to consider on Monday issuing a convertible bond to an Abu Dhabi-based strategic investor.
Aabar said it is not aware of any additional news that could be driving up its share price.
"We are unaware of any data or important information that may affect our share price," Aabar said in a statement to the Abu Dhabi bourse on Sunday.
The stock had jumped 26.35 per cent in the four trading days to Thursday.
etisalat also added 0.75 per cent, leading the index 0.14 per cent higher to 5,087.96 points.
Gulf stocks
Saudi Arabia's main index gained more than one per cent as banking stocks rallied after Riyad Bank beat expectations with its second-quarter profit.
Riyad Bank jumped 5.07 per cent - its biggest one-day gain in almost two months - after it said its profit in the three months to June 30 climbed 6.8 per cent, topping most forecasts in a Reuters net profit survey last month.
The index, the Gulf region's worst performer this year, advanced 1.12 per cent to 9,483.23 points. It was down 15 per cent this year to Saturday's close.
Other banking stocks also gained, with Al Rajhi Bank jumping 3.51 per cent, Samba Financial Group 2.29 per cent and SABB bank 4.57 per cent.
Oman's main index closed higher for a fifth trading day as investors snapped up shares on expectations of strong corporate earnings. The Gulf region's best-performing index this year gained 0.62 per cent to 11,705.32 points.
Kuwait's index, which has fallen in all but one of the last eight trading days, declined as retail investors sell banking stocks before the summer holidays amid thin trading.
The index lost 0.71 per cent to 15,267.10 points as Kuwait Finance House fell 1.43 per cent and Gulf Bank of Kuwait 1.54 per cent.
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