The recent equity turmoil in Arabian Gulf markets caused by plummeting oil prices has offered attractive valuations, says Mubasher Financial Services.
“The abrupt and severe sell-off in oil markets has added to rising volatility in equity markets in our part of the world, but at the same time it has offered a silver lining,” said Amr Hussein Elalfy, the managing director and global head of research at Mubasher. “On the one hand, lower oil prices should help boost global economic growth in 2015. On the other hand, the recent sell-off in Mena equity markets means valuation levels are not stretched, giving way for more sensible entry points.”
The Dubai Financial Market General Index is trading at 11.8 times earnings, above its five-year average of 10.8 times earnings, according to the research division at Mubasher, which was ranked the third biggest stockbrokerage in December.
The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange General Index is trading at 11 times earnings, above its five-year average of 10.5 times.
Qatar is trading at 12.8 times, above its five-year average of 11.8 times.
Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All-Share Index, however, is trading at 12.8 times earnings, below its five-year average of 13.5 times.
The research division initiated “buy” ratings on Etisalat, Air Arabia, Dana Gas and shares of the Dubai Financial Market Company. Arabtec was rated “hold”.
halsayegh@thenational.ae
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Electoral College Victory
Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
Popular Vote Tally
The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.
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Gender pay parity on track in the UAE
The UAE has a good record on gender pay parity, according to Mercer's Total Remuneration Study.
"In some of the lower levels of jobs women tend to be paid more than men, primarily because men are employed in blue collar jobs and women tend to be employed in white collar jobs which pay better," said Ted Raffoul, career products leader, Mena at Mercer. "I am yet to see a company in the UAE – particularly when you are looking at a blue chip multinationals or some of the bigger local companies – that actively discriminates when it comes to gender on pay."
Mr Raffoul said most gender issues are actually due to the cultural class, as the population is dominated by Asian and Arab cultures where men are generally expected to work and earn whereas women are meant to start a family.
"For that reason, we see a different gender gap. There are less women in senior roles because women tend to focus less on this but that’s not due to any companies having a policy penalising women for any reasons – it’s a cultural thing," he said.
As a result, Mr Raffoul said many companies in the UAE are coming up with benefit package programmes to help working mothers and the career development of women in general.
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
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