UAE equities gain as oil rallies on US-Iran uncertainty

Stock markets in the United Arab Emirates closed higher on Friday with Dubai outperforming the rest of the region, supported by rising oil prices as investors doubted the prospect of a breakthrough in U.S.-Iran peace talks.

The countries remain divided on Tehran’s uranium stockpile and controls on the Strait of Hormuz.

Brent crude was up 2.85% at $105.5 a barrel by 1130 GMT.

Dubai’s main market rose 0.6%, led by gains in real estate and industrial sector stocks.

Blue-chip developer Emaar Properties jumped 1.6%, while parking service provider Parkin Company added 1.7%.

Emaar Properties said the group’s head of finance Hesham Heikal has left the company and Pawan Chindalia, currently finance chief at Emaar Development, has been appointed his successor.

Parkin said a new 5% value-added tax on parking services is not expected to impact its financial position.

Stock markets in the UAE remained relatively stable, trading close to levels seen over the past few days, with sentiment likely to stay cautious as investors monitor developments in talks between the U.S. and Iran, said Hani Abuagla, senior market analyst at XTB MENA.

Abu Dhabi’s benchmark index gained 0.2%; real estate giant Aldar Properties rose 3.5% and state-owned energy firm Adnoc Gas advanced 1.2%.

Real estate giant Aldar Properties said it had sold out its Al Ghadeer Gardens development at launch, generating more than 1 billion dirhams ($272.32 million).

For the week, the Dubai and Abu Dhabi indexes recorded losses of 0.3% and 0.2%, respectively, according to data compiled by LSEG.