Author: Finance for Sight

Dubai’s index ended lower on Friday, with banking and industrial stocks driving losses as rising geopolitical tensions dampened market sentiment, while the Abu Dhabi index closed almost flat. Regional geopolitical tensions have escalated this week, after Israel resumed airstrikes and ground operations in Gaza, effectively ending a two-month-old ceasefire. Dubai’s main index declined 0.6%, hitting a near-three-month low, dragged lower by a 4% drop in Dubai Islamic Bank and a 9.8% fall in Gulf Navigation Holding. Outperforming the broader market, Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Co, (Du), rose 0.9% after Bloomberg News reported that Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment Company could sell at…

GAZA CITY: The health ministry in Gaza said on Sunday that at least 50,021 people had been killed in the Palestinian territory by continuous Israeli air and ground strikes since October 2023. “The toll for the Israeli aggression has reached 50,021 martyrs and 113,274 wounded since October 7, 2023”, a ministry statement said. The territory’s civil defence agency, citing its own records, also said the toll had topped 50,000 deaths. The United Nations has deemed the figures from the health ministry reliable. Israeli airstrike kills Hamas political leader in southern Gaza, Hamas says The toll surged this week following the…

LONDON: Asian spot liquefied natural gas (LNG) prices rose slightly this week but remained close to a three-month low amid ample supply and mild weather forecasts. The average LNG price for May delivery into north-east Asia was at $14.60 per million British thermal units (mmBtu), up from $13.40/mmBtu last week, industry sources estimated. “It’s currently a reactionary market: hard to forecast what will happen next given an environment of new tariffs, sanctions and potential new supply volume becoming operational,” said Toby Copson, chairman at Davenport Energy Partners. “Conversely, we’re coming in to summer procurement months so that may push spot…

GAZA CITY: The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said Sunday that at least 50,021 people have been killed in the Palestinian territory since war with Israel began in October 2023. “The toll for the Israeli aggression has reached 50,021 martyrs and 113,274 wounded since October 7, 2023”, a ministry statement said. The territory’s civil defence agency, citing its own records, also said the toll had topped 50,000 deaths. AFP has been unable to independently verify the figures, as has been the case throughout the war. The United Nations has deemed the figures from the health ministry reliable. Israeli airstrike kills…

NEW DELHI: India’s government has told a court in Mumbai that agreeing to Volkswagen’s demand to quash a $1.4 billion tax bill would have “catastrophic consequences” and encourage companies to withhold information and delay inquiries, court documents show. India’s highest-ever demand for back taxes related to import duties came after scrutiny of 12 years of Volkswagen shipments and has rekindled foreign investors’ fears over lengthy investigations. The automaker has described the case as a “matter of life and death” for its India business, and is fighting the tax authority in the high court in Mumbai. Volkswagen unit, Skoda Auto Volkswagen…

Wall Street’s main indexes declined on Friday as investors continued to navigate the complex landscape of tariffs, with FedEx becoming the latest firm to adjust its annual projections due to economic uncertainties. FedEx fell 10.9%, while peer UPS lost 3.3%. Delivery firms are often seen as a barometer for the global economy given their involvement in a wide range of industries. The delivery companies weighed on the Dow Jones Transport Index, which is often seen as a gauge of U.S. economic health. The index fell 2.1% and has lost over 19% from its November all-time peak. Airlines such as Delta…

A Russian drone attack on Kyiv killed two people, sparked fires in apartment buildings and forced the evacuation of tens of people, Ukraine’s State Emergency Service said early on Sunday. A woman died after falling debris from a destroyed drone sparked a fire in a high-rise residential building the capital’s Dniprosvkyi district, the emergency service posted on the Telegram messaging channel. Ukraine destroys 100 of 179 Russian drones in overnight attack At least 27 were evacuated from the building. Another person died in the overnight attack on Kyiv’s Holosiivskyi district, the service said.

NEW YORK: Oil prices were steady on Friday and headed for a second consecutive weekly gain as fresh U.S. sanctions on Iran and the latest output plan from the OPEC+ producer group raised expectations of tighter supply. Brent crude futures was up 3 cents at $72.03 a barrel by 10:52 a.m. EDT [1452 GMT]. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 14 cents, or 0.2%, to $68.21. On a weekly basis, Brent was on track to rise more than 2% and WTI about 1.7%, marking their biggest gains since the first week of the year. The U.S. Treasury on Thursday…

WASHINGTON: Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff said the US president was trying to head off armed conflict with Iran by building trust with Tehran in remarks broadcast on Friday. In an interview with online news anchor Tucker Carlson published on X, Witkoff said Trump’s recent letter to the Iran’s government had not been intended as a threat. The United States and Iran are longtime foes and relations are at a new low after new Israeli strikes against targets in Gaza and threats to shipping from Yemen’s Houthi. On March 7, Trump said he had written to Iran’s supreme…

GAZA CITY: Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas’s Fatah movement called on its rivals Hamas on Saturday to relinquish power in order to safeguard the “existence” of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. “Hamas must show compassion for Gaza, its children, women and men,” Fatah spokesman Monther al-Hayek said in a message sent to AFP from Gaza. He called on Hamas to “step aside from governing and fully recognise that the battle ahead will lead to the end of Palestinians’ existence” if it remains in power in Gaza. Hamas seized power in Gaza in 2007 from the Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority, and subsequent attempts…