DUBAI: Solid earnings posted by Dubai’s Emaar Properties and Commercial Bank of Qatar may support their respective stock markets on Thursday, but the end of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s stimulus program has weakened the global backdrop.
Emaar Properties, Dubai’s largest listed developer, reported a 21 percent rise in third-quarter net profit on Wednesday. At 701 million dirhams ($191 million), its earnings missed an estimate by brokerage SICO Bahrain, which had forecast Emaar’s quarterly profit would be 762.4 million dirhams.
The miss, however, was largely due to Emaar taking an impairment of 57 million dirhams related to mortgage affiliate Amlak.
Another brokerage, Egypt’s Naeem, said the firm’s results were in line with its estimates and maintained a “buy” recommendation with a target price of 14.61 dirhams, against Wednesday’s close of 10.35 dirhams.
Meanwhile Commercial Bank of Qatar, the Gulf Arab state’s second-largest lender by assets, reported a forecast-beating 79 percent rise in third-quarter profit. The bank earned a net profit of 503 million riyals ($138.1 million) while analysts had on average forecast 457.8 million riyals.
U.S. stocks edged down overnight and Asian markets fell on Thursday after the U.S. Federal Reserve ended its massive quantitative easing programme, as expected, and analysts saw hawkish undertones in its statement.
However, Middle East fund managers remain positive on many Gulf stock markets and Egypt after sharp pull-backs improved valuations, according to the latest monthly Reuters survey, published on Thursday.
The survey of 15 leading regional investment managers found 47 percent of them intending to raise their overall equity allocation to the Middle East in the next three months, while 20 percent expected to decrease allocations.
Copyright Reuters, 2014