DUBAI: Major Gulf stock markets were mixed on Thursday, with the Abu Dhabi index rising after aquaculture firm International Holding Company reported a higher quarterly profit.
Abu Dhabi’s index closed 0.6% higher with a weekly gain of 1.7%. International Holding was up 3.3%, boosting the index the most. The firm posted 1.5 billion dirhams of profit in the first quarter compared with 112.2 million dirhams a year earlier.
The company’s board also approved acquiring stake in four companies through its units. Emirates Telecommu-nications Group, which is set to raise 1 billion euros ($1.2 billion) in dual-tranche bonds on Thursday, added 0.8%.
Abu Dhabi’s gains were capped by a 5.5% drop in Dana Gas as it traded ex-dividend.
The Dubai index was up 0.5% and ended the week with a 2.3% rise. Emirates NBD Bank advanced 2.1% and Emaar Malls added 1.6%.
Aramex closed nearly 1% down. The Courier firm fell as much as 3.9% during the day after reporting a 32% decline in first-quarter profit to 46 million dirhams ($12.52 million)
Saudi Arabia’s benchmark index was down 0.2% and fell 1.8% for the week.
Saudi Telecom declined 1.8%, extending losses from Wednesday, when it traded ex-dividend.
Among the gainers, Al Rajhi Bank and Sahara International Petrochemical advanced 0.4% and 3.9%, respectively.
The Qatari index ended flat with Industries Qatar gaining 0.7% and Commercial Bank losing 1%.
Outside the Gulf, Egypt’s blue-chip index ended up 0.7%. Commercial International Bank Egypt led the gainers increasing 1.3%.
Cigarette maker Eastern Company climbed 1.3%, extending gains for a third day after posting a 24.3% jump in profit for the nine-month period that ended on March 31.
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