| Abu Dhabi's big developers in the spotlight
This week marks the end of the three-month period both developers said they would take to prepare a study to be put before their boards. 11 on Thursday, while Sorouh gained 6. Aldar is trading at 0. The two stocks stopped moving in lockstep about three weeks ago. 04 per share. "Abu Dhabi will have a much stronger company after the merger," said Marwan Shurrab, the chief trader at Gulfmena Investments in Dubai. Aldar built the F1 Yas Marina Circuit and Central Market developments while Sorouh is the developer behind projects that provide Reem Island's Sun and Sky Towers. 5bn for which it can easily tap into the debt market but will be paying more. Abu Dhabi property developers were hit hard by the global financial crisis in 2008, with prices tumbling by as much as 60 per cent from their peak in some places. Aldar rose 6. "People are trying to put assumptions on what could be the parity of the merger and who could come out as the main beneficiary. "If [Mr] Shafiq wins, I believe we're going to see signs of instability for the short term," said Amr Reda at Pharos Securities Brokerage. "Maybe investors think the merger will have a parity of 1 for 1, Aldar could be beneficiary. Aldar presently has a surplus of Dh900 million, while Sorouh has a budget gap of Dh1. 69. Egyptian investors are in wait-and-see mode ahead of a crucial run-off vote in the country's presidential election. The run-off reflects a polarised political scene after more than 15 months of shaky military rule since the overthrow of Hosni Mubarak. The last stage of voting on June 16 and 17 is a two-way race between Ahmed Shafiq, a former prime minister and an admirer of the deposed leader, and the Muslim Brotherhood's Mohammed Morsi. "It is interesting to see Aldar's shares have started to outperform Sorouh," Mr Henin said. Many Egyptians believe Mr Shafiq has the backing of the powerful army, while the Brotherhood has a formidable grassroots following and a well organised campaign machine, making the outcome hard to call. Investors suspect if Mr Shafiq were to win it could spark far bigger protests on the streets and trading on the Cairo stock exchange has been muted ahead of the vote. Aldar and Sorouh accounted for additional than a third of daily trading volumes on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange last week as investors built up positions ahead of an expected announcement. The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange General Index slipped 0. 65, while the Dubai Financial Market General Index fell 0. 5 per cent to 1,463. But he said a win for either Mr Shafiq or Mr Morsi could help unblock aid from foreign donors including the IMF that has been delayed partly because Egypt has had a temporary government. |
Tuesday, 12 June 2012
Abu Dhabi's big developers in the spotlight
