Dubai's stock market rose in early trading on Monday boosted by positive corporate earnings, while Saudi Arabian shares extended their gains for a third consecutive day.
Dubai's index rose 0.6% led by a 1.2% gain in Emaar Properties. The largest listed developer in Dubai reported a 20% rise in profit for the third quarter.
The profit came despite a prolonged slowdown in the emirate's property sector, where the supply glut has sent residential prices sliding by at least a quarter since mid-2014.
Emirates NBD was up 0.5%, while Air Arabia advanced 1.4% as its third-quarter profit jumped 57%. The United Arab Emirates' only listed airline attributed the surge to a 10% rise in passengers it carried from its four hubs in the UAE, Morocco and Egypt.
Saudi Arabia's index was up 0.5%. Al Rajhi Bank increased 1.3%, while Saudi Basic Industries (SABIC) edged up 0.6% in its fifth day of gains.
Saudi Aramco in its initial public offering prospectus said it expected to close its acquisition of Sabic in the first half of next year.
Tabuk Agricultural Development soared 8.5% to be the second biggest gainer on the index.
The agricultural company's loss in the third quarter widened, but the company said it would write off its accumulated losses by way of reducing the capital.
Gulf union cooperative insurance and united cooperative assurance both gained 3% after they turned to pre-zakat profit in the third quarter.
Abu Dhabi's index was down 0.2% with Emirates Telecommunications shedding 0.6% following its chairman Eissa Ghanem Al Suwaidi's resignation.
However, Dana Gas jumped 3.4%. The energy firm said on Sunday its collections from Egypt, UAE and Iraq's Kurdistan increased 16.7% to $230 million in the nine-month period.
In Qatar, the index edged up 0.2% as Industries Qatar added 1.1% and Qatar International Islamic Bank was up 2.3%.
(Reporting by Maqsood Alam in Bengaluru; Editing by Jacqueline Wong) ((Maqsood.Alam@thomsonreuters.com;))
