Saudi minister’s comments lift Tadawul

11/10/2016 06:02 AST

Shares across the Arabian Gulf recovered partially after Sunday’s sell-offs, with UAE bourses breaking multi-day losing streaks.

Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul closed up 1.2 per cent, after the country’s oil minister said that it was "not unthinkable" that oil prices could rise to US$60 per barrel by the end of the year.

The rise followed a 2.2 per cent drop on Sunday, led by a sell-off in banking stocks. Brent crude futures were up by about 1.6 per cent at $52.76 per barrel yesterday afternoon.

The Dubai Financial Market General Index shares broke a five-day losing streak, closing up 0.3 per cent at 3,358.57, even as more shares ended in the red than in the black.

Shares in DIB led big-name gainers, closing up 2.1 per cent at Dh5.28, the biggest one-day gain in more than two weeks.

Trading on the Dubai bourse was dominated by Drake & Scull International, after the construction group announced the appointment of Wael Allen, previously the firm’s chief operating officer, as its new chief executive.

Drake & Scull closed up 7 per cent at 47.4 fils, its largest one-day gain in five months. Shares in fellow construction group Arabtec Holding rose by 0.7 per cent to Dh1.42.

In the capital, the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange General Index ended a quiet day up by 0.5 per cent at 4,387.34, thanks to a last-minute gain by bellwether FGB. NBAD and Etisalat also rose.

Elsewhere in the region, the Qatar Exchange closed up 0.4 per cent, led by Industries Qatar and Qatar Insurance.

The National