Abu Dhabi gains as IHC rules out Aldar stake sale; Dubai edges up

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By Mohd Edrees Stock exchanges in the United Arab Emirates closed higher on Friday, with Abu Dhabi outperforming its regional peers, boosted by gains in blue-chip developer Aldar Properties and Adnoc-owned companies.Abu Dhabi's benchmark index (.FFTFADGI) advanced 0.5%, led by a 3.6% climb in Aldar Properties ADX:ALDAR and a 2.2% rise in Adnoc Drilling ADX:ADNOCDRILL.Aldar's parent firm International Holding Company ADX:IHC announced on Thursday that it has no plans to divest its stake in Aldar Properties.However, Sharjah-based Dana Gas ADX:DANA declined 1.9% after the firm posted a 26% drop in Q3 net profit to 109 million dirham ($29.68 million).Dubai's main index DFM:DFMGI edged 0.1% up, supported by a 0.9% gain in top lender Emirates NBD Bank DFM:EMIRATESNBD and 1.8% rise in state-run utility Dubai Electricity And Water Authority DFM:DEWA.Among the gainers, Construction firm Emaar Development DFM:EMAARDEV rose 1% as the firm reported a 57% surge in Q3 net profit to 3.25 billion dirhams ($884.86 million).Blue-chip developer Emaar Properties DFM:EMAAR declined 1.5% despite its better-than-expected Q3 earnings as sentiment remained cautious globally.The Dubai index could potentially rebound, finding support from generally positive Q3 results as it awaits the next releases, said Ahmed Negm, Head of Market Research MENA at XS.com. Abu Dhabi stocks logged a 0.3% weekly loss, while Dubai's benchmark index extended losses to a second week with the index falling 0.6% after four consecutive weeks of gains, according to LSEG data. Oil prices rose on Friday but remained on track for a second consecutive weekly loss after three days of declines on worries about excess supply and slowing U.S. demand.Brent Crude (LCOC1) was up 0.9% at $63.92 a barrel by 1132 GMT.ABU DHABIADX:FADGI rose 0.5% to 10,075DUBAIDFM:DFMGI edged up 0.1% to 6,025($1 = 3.6729 UAE dirham)

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