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UAE Shares Diverge as Fresh US-Iran Strikes Send Oil Above $100

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Stocks in the United Arab Emirates closed mixed on Wednesday as heightened tensions in the Middle East pushed oil prices above $100 a barrel for the first time since July.

At the close of trading, the FTSE ADX General Index was up 0.854%, while the DFM General Index declined 0.324%.

The US Central Command said Tuesday it destroyed five Iranian crude oil carriers in response to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' attempted ballistic missile strikes on a US Navy warship over the previous two days. Iran retaliated by attacking US bases in Jordan and also warned to target vessels in the Persian Gulf.

"The US strikes against Iran appear limited, and the Iranians appear to be focused on local US bases. The harsh reality of ships getting hit like the Sidr and the Senegal Prosperity brings home that this is an ongoing conflict and that until it reaches a definitive resolution (which feels some way off), it has potential to escalate and de-escalate," Macquarie said in a note. "With more oil going through the Hormuz (albeit with vessels getting hit), we are in neither a situation of max greed nor a situation of max fear."

Brent crude oil futures stood at nearly $100.87 per barrel as of 3:47 pm UAE time, up 3.02% from the previous day.

Back at home, Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange integrated US-based financial services company Virtu Financial's POSIT technology to launch a block-trading indications network for its listed equity securities, allowing its customers to complete block trades with minimal impact and information leakage.

Over to corporates, Al Seer Marine Supplies and Equipment Co. (ADX:ASM) concluded the sale and delivery of its Twin Pollux very large crude carrier and plans to use the proceeds for reinvestment purposes. Shares of the marine equipment supplier closed the session 1.84% higher.

Over in Dubai, Emirates Central Cooling Systems (DFM:EMPOWER), d/b/a Empower, secured US Green Building Council's LEED Gold certification for its Jumeirah Beach Hills district cooling plant. Empower closed 1.88% lower.

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