Real estate, energy drag Abu Dhabi bourse down

The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange is expected to continue its downturn before consolidating around its important support of 2740 points by the end of the week.

The general index continued it downward movement as it lost 16.97 points, or 0.61 per cent, to close at 2758.25 points in the face of pressure from leading active stocks in the real estate and energy sectors.

Turnover jumped yesterday as 153.4 million shares worth Dh256.3 million changed hands. However, the most active stock was CBI, which attracted 50 per cent of the total trade values.

The stock rallied 3.57 per cent to Dh1.45 through four transactions with a total volume of 77.2 million shares.

The remainder of the active stocks continued to trade at low levels and were bearish in general. Aldar fell 3.2 per cent to Dh4.77 while Sorouh retreated 1.44 per cent to Dh2.73. Aabar dropped slightly to close at Dh2.47 while Taqa was among the top gainers as it added five per cent to reach Dh1.27.

"ADX is expected to continue its downturn during the coming two sessions due to the overall bearish sentiment in the market," said Taimur Saadat, Head of Technical Analysis at Arab Capital Markets. "The market is expected to touch its support area of 2,740 points and become range-bound trading in the next two weeks.

The telecom and real estate sectors will determine the direction of the market. Etisalat is moving range-bound and will lead the market's direction."

Etisalat retreated slightly yesterday to close at Dh11.15 after gaining in the previous two sessions. The banking sector also remained bearish and continued to decline in a narrow range.


Market build-up

Foreign investors have been returning to the ADX since the beginning of the year and may lead a rally on the market next month, according to Taimur Saadat.

"Foreign investors have been buying in the market since the beginning of the year – they bought shares worth 21.5 per cent more than those they sold. We expect foreign investors to continue buying during the next two weeks. This will lead to a build-up of momentum in the market, which will trigger a rally after a month."

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