What you need to know as UAE markets open on April 12

Here are some things you need to know as markets open today in the United Arab Emirates.

1) Dubai Islamic Bank posted a net profit of AED 1.04 billion for first quarter of 2017, up 4 percent year-on-year.

2) Trading in Mashreq Bank shares will be suspended starting 11.30 am today as the bank is holding its board meeting. The meeting is expected to discuss Q1 earnings.

3) Nasdaq Dubai has added National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD), Dubai Financial Market (DFM) and Dubai Investments (DIC) to its equity futures market, raising the number of UAE companies on which futures can be traded to 12.

4) Dubai-listed Damac Properties has priced at par a $500 million sukuk with a five-year tenor and a profit rate of 6.25 percent, Reuters reported. The Regulation S, senior unsecured bond was priced with a spread of 430.3 basis points over mid-swaps, the news agency said.

5) Dubai’s hotel and retail sectors continued to slow down in Q1 2017, while office spaces and residential performance have shown slight improvement, real estate advisory firm JLL said.

6) Oil prices advanced on Wednesday. Brent crude was last up 0.3 percent at $56.39/bbl and WTI crude rose 0.2 percent to $53.52/bbl.

7) Asian equities were mostly lower towards closing hours. Japan’s Nikkei225 Index was last down 1.2 percent; Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 0.2 percent; and China’s CSI300 Index was down 0.04 percent.

Write to Nadeshda Zareen at nadeshda.zareen@argaamplus.com