Emirati Equities Close Busy Corporate Earnings Week in Green
Shares in the United Arab Emirates closed on a positive note as investors balanced a busy week of corporate earnings with the latest geopolitical developments.At the close of Friday trading, the FTSE ADX General Index added 0.362%, while the DFM General Index was subdued at 0.065% in the green.The Abu Dhabi bourse welcomed first-half financial releases from Borouge (ADX:BOROUGE), Pure Health Holding (ADX:PUREHEALTH), Emsteel Building Materials (ADX:EMSTEEL), and Dubai Financial Market (DFM:DFM).Borouge shares closed flat as its first-half profit dropped 27% year over year due to reduced margins driven by higher freight, logistics, and propylene feedstock costs. Pure Health and Emsteel Building Materials, on the other hand, logged higher profits for the period and closed 1.80% and 0.91% higher, respectively.Bourse operator Dubai Financial Market's net profit slipped despite increased trading activity and investor participation during the period. Its shares lost 1.39% at closing.On the geopolitical front, US President Donald Trump said in a social media post that an agreement for the complete disarmament of Hamas and armed groups in Gaza was reached, with the city to be governed by a new Palestinian government working closely with his Board of Peace.In other news, the personal consumption expenditures price index, the US Fed's preferred inflation gauge, cooled in June, driven by a decline in energy prices during a temporary ceasefire agreement between the US and Iran."On the inflation front, the PCE fell 0.1% in June, as expected and marking the first monthly decline since April 2020. Year-over-year, headline inflation climbed 3.7%, easing from the 4.1% gain in June and marking the smallest gain in three months," Stifel said. "Excluding food and energy costs, the core PCE rose 0.1% in June, a tenth of a percentage point less than expected and following a 0.3% gain in May. Over the past 12 months, core inflation rose 3.3%, as expected and marking the smallest gain since April."
