UAE stocks face pressure as oil drops

UAE markets fell within minutes after trading began on Wednesday, with the Dubai Financial Market (DFM) down 1.43 percent to 3,146 points and the Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange (ADX) down 0.42 percent to 4,295.

Abu Dhabi’s Dana Gas fell 3.92 percent to AED 0.49 soon after trade began.

ADX-listed United Arab Bank said it won’t pay a dividend for fiscal year 2015. The recommendation is set to be approved at the general assembly meeting on March 14.

On DFM, Emirates NBD was down 4.13 percent to AED 7.20. The bank approved the distribution of a 40 percent cash dividend (40 fils per share).

Empower, a Dubai air conditioning provider, has halted plans to go public due to current market conditions.

Oil and global markets

Brent crude last traded down 1.35 percent to $32.82 a barrel (bbl). Saudi Arabia’s oil minister on Tuesday ruled out slashing oil production. He said exporters will instead focus on finalizing a deal to cap output at January levels.

China’s Shanghai Composite Index was down 0.66 percent to 2,884 points as it neared closing hours. Japan’s Nikkei fell 0.84 percent to 15,917 points.

In the U.S., Dow Jones closed Tuesday down 1.14 percent to 16,431 points, while Nasdaq slipped 1.47 percent to 4,503 points.

Write to Matthew Watson at matthew.w@argaamplus.com and

Nadeshda Zareen at nadeshda.zareen@argaamplus.com