Mideast Stocks: Aramex buoys Dubai bourse, Saudi at 15-year high

Mideast Stocks: Aramex buoys Dubai bourse, Saudi at 15-year high

Dubai's stock market rose in early trade on Wednesday, outperforming its regional peers, while the Saudi index held on to a 15-year high. Dubai's main share index advanced 0.8%. Aramex surged 14.9%, its biggest intraday gain since Jan. 2009, after a direct deal worth 1.41 billion dirhams ($383.90 million) was implemented on its 295 million shares. On Tuesday, the logistics firm also resumed deliveries to and from the United Arab Emirates and Doha. Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt agreed in January to end a dispute that had led them to sever ties with Qatar in 2017 over accusations that Doha supported "terrorism" - a reference to Islamist groups. Doha denied the charges. Among other gainers, top lender Emirates NBD added 0.4% after a 61% jump in third-quarter earnings, as impairment charges slumped on a recovering economy and demand for retail financing surged. On the other hand, Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Co dropped 0.6%, on course to extend losses for a second session. The telecoms firm reported a quarterly net profit of 283.2 million dirhams ($77.11 million) on Tuesday, down from 824.1 million dirhams a year earlier. Saudi Arabia's benchmark index gained 0.3%, with Al Rajhi bank rising 0.9%, while