(CNN) -- Dubai sent investors reeling Thursday after asking creditors to freeze the debt repayments of one of its biggest holding companies, Dubai World. The announcement came after the market close on the eve of the Eid holiday and Thanksgiving in the U.S., leaving traders' hands tied over their exposure to investments in the Emirate. Shares dropped in London and Europe as bankers struggled to gauge the implications of the debt freeze without additional guidance from Wall Street. With very little information being distributed from Dubai, the market has been left to question the motives of ruler Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum and the financial future of Dubai World and its huge portfolio.
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Dubai stuns global investors by calling for a debt "standstill" on Dubai World and Nakheel debts
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Market reactions restrained by public holidays in the Middle East and the U.S.
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Nakheel is Dubai World's real estate arm, owns "The Palm Islands," and "The World"
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Dubai World said to account for $59 billion of Dubia's $80 billion debt
It has said that the @placeholder debt freeze is the first stage of a restructuring plan.