Gulf markets closed mainly in the red on Sunday, with market heavyweights Emaar Properties and Emirates NBD dragging Dubai's index lower and Egypt's market falling to fresh lows for the year. After plunging to its lowest level in more than five years on Thursday, the Dubai index regained ground in early trading before closing 1.2 percent lower.
The market has fallen 24.3 percent this year, partly due to concerns about the health of Dubai's real estate sector and wider economy. Emaar Properties, its largest developer, sank 1.9 percent, while Emirates NBD dropped 1.1 percent.
The main index in Saudi Arabia finished 0.1 percent lower, with Al Rajhi Bank closing 0.2 percent down. Earlier Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Ma'aden) helped Saudi Arabia's stock index gain ground in early trading on Sunday.
Ma'aden was up 2.6 percent after the company said on December 6 that the firm will start commercial production on Sunday at its plant producing aluminium flat rolled products. Ma'aden Rolling Company is 74.9 percent owned by Ma'aden and 25.1 percent owned by Alcoa. Al Rajhi Bank gained 0.1 percent, while Jabal Omar Development Co added 0.6 percent.
After plunging to its lowest level in more than five years on Thursday, the Dubai index regained ground in early trading before dipping by 0.1 percent later. Dubai Islamic Bank lost 0.4 percent, while DAMAC Properties, which last month reported a 68 percent plunge in third-quarter net profit, slipped 1.7 percent.
In Abu Dhabi, the main index lost 0.3 percent, weighed down by banking giant First Abu Dhabi Bank, which sank 0.6 percent. In Qatar, the index added 0.4 percent, with Industries Qatar rising 1.1 percent. The Egyptian-blue chip index lost 2 percent, with 26 of its 30 stocks falling, partly due to concerns about new bank regulations.
The country's biggest lender, Commercial International Bank (COMI), slipped 0.6 percent after last week providing an update on the proposed law on taxation of Treasury holdings. The company said the changes would not affect 2018 results but its projections show a 5 percent profit decline in 2019, depending on whether loan loss provisions would be included in the tax treatment.
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