FINWIRES · TerminalLIVE
FINWIRES

UAE Stocks Blink Green on US-Iran Deal Optimism

By

Stock trading in the United Arab Emirates closed higher on Thursday as prospects of a deal between the US and Iran boosted market sentiment.

At the close of trading, the FTSE ADX General Index gained 0.399%, while the DFM General Index was up 0.60%.

According to reports by multiple media outlets, Iran is reviewing a new US proposal aimed at ending the conflict in the Middle East. US President Donald Trump said he could wait a few days to get the right answers from Iran and threatened escalation in case a deal is not reached.

"For the second time this May, markets are trying to trade a US-Iran peace deal after President Trump said negotiations were in their 'final stages'. Conviction is lower this time. Rhetoric from both sides remains belligerent, and markets are more hesitant to chase optimistic headlines after earlier disappointments," ING said.

Closer to home, the UAE's new oil pipeline meant to bypass the Strait of Hormuz reached 50% completion, but full oil flows are not expected to return before the first or second quarter of 2027, Reuters reported, citing UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and Abu Dhabi National Oil Co., or Adnoc's, head Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber.

Over to corporates, Abu Dhabi National Co. for Building Materials (ADX:BILDCO) d/b/a Bildco, intends to launch an integrated logistics hub and a collection and operations center in Oman. Shares of the building materials company closed the session flat.

Elsewhere, Dubai Investments (DFM:DIC) unit Globalpharma signed seven strategic memoranda of understanding with different companies to bolster its capabilities across product development, manufacturing, financing, and sustainable operations. Its stocks closed the session 0.55% higher.

Related Articles

Asia Markets

US Equity Indexes Jump Amid Sliding Treasury Yields, Crude Oil as Trump Says Iran Talks in Final Stages

US equity indexes jumped at the close on Wednesday as government bond yields sank amid a slide in crude oil futures after President Donald Trump talked up expectations for an Iran peace agreement.The Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.6% to 26,270.36, with the S&P 500 up 1.1% to 7,432.97 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average higher by 1.3% to 50,009.35 on Wednesday.Consumer discretionary and technology topped the sector charts. Energy was the worst performer.US equity indexes closed higher on Wednesday in anticipation of strong results from the tech bellwether and AI poster child, Nvidia (NVDA). The chipmaker reported after the bell stronger-than-expected fiscal Q1 adjusted earnings and revenue, beating market expectations. The chipmaker unveiled an additional $80 billion share repurchase authorization and raised its quarterly dividend.Meanwhile, Iran negotiations are in the final stages, Reuters cited President Donald Trump as saying on Wednesday. The US president reiterated his warning of further attacks unless Tehran agrees to a deal."We're in the final stages of Iran. We'll see what happens," Trump was cited as telling reporters. "Either have a deal, or we're going to do some things that are a little bit nasty, but hopefully that won't happen.""If aggression against Iran is repeated, the promised regional war will extend beyond the region this time," Reuters cited the Revolutionary Guards as saying in a statement.Brent crude futures slumped 5.7% to $104.91.US Treasury yields fell, with the 30-year down 6.6 basis points to 5.11%, retreating from its highest since 2007. The 10-year dropped 9.3 basis points to 4.58%, also declining from its strongest level in more than a year.In precious metals, gold futures rose 0.8% to $4,548.2, and silver futures climbed 1.5% to $76.27.A majority of FOMC participants appear to be leaning away from rate cuts for now and were open to the possibility of rate increases, minutes of the April 28-29 meeting released Wednesday showed."Several participants highlighted that it would likely be appropriate to lower the target range for the federal funds rate once there are clear indications that disinflation is firmly back on track or if solid signs emerge of greater weakness in the labor market," the minutes said."A majority of participants highlighted, however, that some policy firming would likely become appropriate if inflation were to continue to run persistently above 2%," according to the minutes.

$^DJI$^IXIC$^SPX$NVDA
Asia Markets

US Equity Indexes Rise as Investors Await Nvidia's Earnings While Iran Peace Talks Enter Final Stages

US equity indexes rose ahead of Nvidia's (NVDA) earnings and April minutes from the Federal Reserve's policy meeting, and as Iran's negotiations with a trio of Gulf nations entered the final stages.The Nasdaq Composite rose 1.1% to 26,165.1, with the S&P 500 up 0.8% to 7,412.9 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average higher by 1% to 49,854.6 in midday trading on Wednesday.Consumer discretionary and technology topped the sector charts. Energy was the worst performer.Nvidia's (NVDA) fiscal Q1 sales are expected to outperform market projections, with potential for "enhanced" cash returns likely to be among the key areas of focus, BofA Securities said in a note. The brokerage maintained its buy rating on the Nvidia stock, with a $320 price objective, citing its "dominance in the fastest growing tech market and its compelling valuation."Chip stocks steadied ahead of Nvidia's earnings, which investors view as a "crucial test of AI demand amid concerns about elevated Treasury yields," according to a D.A. Davidson note.Meanwhile, Iran negotiations are in the final stages, Reuters cited US President Donald Trump as saying on Wednesday. But Trump warned of further attacks unless Tehran agrees to a deal."We're in the final stages of Iran. We'll see what happens," Trump was cited as telling reporters. "Either have a deal, or we're going to do some things that are a little bit nasty, but hopefully that won't happen.""If aggression against Iran is repeated, the promised regional war will extend beyond the region this time," Reuters cited the Revolutionary Guards as saying in a statement.West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures slid 0.8% to $107.77, while Brent crude futures slumped 5.7% to $104.92.US Treasury yields fell, with the 30-year down 6.5 basis points to 5.12%, retreating from its highest since 2007. The 10-year dropped 8.7 basis points to 4.58%, also declining from its strongest level in more than a year.In precious metals, gold futures rose 0.6% to $4,536.8, and silver futures climbed 1.5% to $75.30.In US economic news, the Federal Reserve is scheduled to post minutes from its April policy meeting at 2 pm ET, in which policymakers had voted to keep the federal funds rate unchanged at 3.5% to 3.75%.However, Dallas Fed president Lorie Logan, Minneapolis Fed president Neel Kashkari, and Cleveland Fed president Beth Hammack were the three members of the Federal Open Market Committee who explicitly dissented against language that left the door open to a possible easing bias, according to a Scotiabank note. Boston Fed president Susan Collins later revealed that she was a non-voting supporter of the dissenters."That makes almost one-quarter (4) of the 17 FOMC members and one-quarter (3) of the voting FOMC members who officially opposed any hint at easing" at the last meeting, Derek Holt, head of capital markets economics at Scotiabank, said in an earlier note. "Will others be revealed? Watch the language that cites frequency of citation for an indication (one, a couple, a few, some, several, many, most, etc.)."

$^DJI$^IXIC$^SPX$NVDA
Asia Markets

Exchange-Traded Funds Move Higher as US Equities Rise After Midday

Broad Market IndicatorsBroad-market exchange-traded funds IWM and IVV advanced. Actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) added 1.2%.US equity indexes rose ahead of Nvidia's (NVDA) quarterly earnings and minutes of the Federal Reserve's last policy meeting, while the Iran standoff continued.EnergyIShares US Energy ETF (IYE) fell 1.5% and the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) dipped 1.8%.TechnologyThe State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) rose 1.6%; iShares US Technology ETF (IYW) added 1.4%, and iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (IGM) was up 1.4%.The State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor (XSD) gained 3.3%, and iShares Semiconductor (SOXX) was up 3.8%.FinancialThe State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR (XLF) added 0.9%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) climbed 2.6%, and its bearish counterpart, Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ), declined 2.5%.CommoditiesCrude oil dropped 2.7%, and the United States Oil Fund (USO) lost 6.2%. Natural gas fell 2.6%, and the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) was down 3.3%.Gold on Comex rose 0.4% and the State Street SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) added 1.2%. Silver gained 1.2%, and iShares Silver Trust (SLV) was up 2.6%.ConsumerThe State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR (XLP) shed 0.4%. The Vanguard Consumer Staples ETF (VDC) fell 0.3%, and iShares Dow Jones US Consumer Goods (IYK) was down 0.1%.The State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY) rose 1.9%. VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) was up 0.7%, and the State Street SPDR S&P Retail (XRT) added 1.8%.HealthcareThe State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR (XLV) fell 0.4%, iShares US Healthcare (IYH) lost 0.3% and Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT) was down 0.1%. IShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) climbed 1.8%.IndustrialThe State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR (XLI) rose 1.3%. Vanguard Industrials Index Fund (VIS) and iShares US Industrials (IYJ) were also higher.CryptocurrencyIn midday activity, bitcoin (BTC-USD) added 0.7%. Among cryptocurrency ETFs, ProShares Bitcoin ETF (BITO) gained 0.8%, ProShares Ether ETF (EETH) was up 0.9%, and ProShares Bitcoin & Ether Market Cap Weight ETF (BETH) was 0.1% lower.

$^DJI$^EEM$^EXI$^FAS$^FAZ$^GLD$^IBB$^IGM$^IGV$^IPK$^IVV$^IWM$^IXIC$^IYE$^IYH$^IYJ$^IYK$^IYW$^PMR$^QQQ$^RTH$^SOXX$^SPX$^SPY$^UNG$^USO$^VDC$^VHT$^VIS$^XLE$^XLF$^XLI$^XLK$^XLP$^XLV$^XRT$^XSD$BETH$BITO$EETH