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18 April 2024

DFM share price closer to its Dh6 target

Published
By Matt Smith

(DENNIS B MALLARI)   

 
 
A late rally helped the Dubai Financial Market climb 1.5 per cent on a curious day’s trading yesterday. Volatility again blighted the DFM’s General Index, which traded in a 100-point range. Heavy buying in the DFM’s stock pushed the index to a close of 5,616 points, with the final 30 points added in the last 15 minutes of trading.

This helped the DFM to steal the show, surging 7.6 per cent to Dh 5.78 while also accounting for 47 per cent of the market’s Dh2.67 billion turnover. “This is an excellent indicator for the DFM, which should reach its next target of Dh6 without any problems,” said Mohamed Alami, Naeem Shares and Bonds relationship manager.

Investors also pumped money into speculative stocks such as Tabreed and Islamic Arab Insurance, with the pair climbing 4.4 and 2.2 per cent respectively.

Emaar struggled, however, dropping 2.43 per cent to Dh12, which means it lost 7.7 per cent this week.

Alami said: “It was unusual to see the market move up while Emaar declined. Emaar is an expensive stock and, as the market leader, it takes a lot to move it one way or the other. It’s resting on a strong support so could rebound next week, but we never call break outs before they happen.”

Du has suffered more than most in 2008 and it fell again yesterday, this time by 0.36 per cent to Dh5.58. The beleaguered telecoms operator has lost a quarter of its value since the turn of the year.

“The market was strange yesterday,” said Alaa el-Din Moustafa, EFG-Hermes chief dealer. “Profit taking in Emaar pushed the index lower, but the rest of the market was positive.

Speculators took a chance on Dubai Islamic Bank, but generally investors are confused right now and it’s a critical time for the market.”

Meanwhile, the Abu Dhabi Securities Market (ADSM) took another tumble, losing 0.35 per cent to end the week on 4,570 points as volumes again failed to breach Dh500 million.

“Abu Dhabi trading is low key, with foreign institutions continuing to accumulate in the real estate and banking sectors, but much less aggressively than before,” said EFG’s Moustafa.

The capital’s three most heavily traded stocks failed to impress. Aabar added 0.23 per cent, despite announcing annual profit growth of 166 per cent, while Aldar Properties dropped 0.49 per cent and etisalat was unchanged.

Meanwhile, Wednesday’s 0.5 per cent interest rate cut had little effect on the UAE markets, analysts said, because this reduction was long anticipated.