What you need to know as UAE markets open on March 14

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

1) National Bank of Abu Dhabi and First Gulf Bank, which are due to be merged by April1, discussed and approved 2017 budget in a meeting of the new board members of the merged entity on Monday. The board also reviewed the post-merger integration blueprint, and the guidelines for the new bank’s medium-term goals.

2) Sharjah Islamic Bank is planning to issue convertible sukuk equivalent to 10 percent of the lender's capital. The funds raised will be used by charities selected by the government of Sharjah. The bank has also authorized a capital increase to AED 2.67 billion from AED 2.43 billion, it said in a statement to Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX).

3) The net foreign investment on ADX in February reached AED 148 million and institutional investments stood at AED 31.8 million, the exchange said in a statement. Foreign investors’ purchases in February touched AED 2.3 billion, representing 44.8 percent of total trades; sales stood at AED 2.2 billion, representing 41.9 percent of total trades.

4) Abu Dhabi state investment fund Mubadala Development has completed a deal to acquire a 20 percent stake in Bahrain-based Investcorp’s parent, Investcorp Bank.

5) Oil prices snapped out of the negative spell on Tuesday, although they remain close to the three-month low reached in the last session. Brent crude was last up 0.1 percent at $51.4/bbl and WTI crude rose 0.04 percent to $48.42/bbl, an hour before UAE markets opened.

6) Asian stocks were mixed towards closing hours, amid expectations of another increase in interest rates after the US Federal Reserve concludes its two-day meeting. Japan’s Nikkei225 Index fell 0.1 percent, while China’s CSI300 Index was slightly higher. 

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