Selling pressure intensifies at Dubai bourse

Selling pressure is intensifying on the DFM as domestic and global worries convince investors to cash in their positions.

Excluding the DFM's two recent debutants, Takaful House and Takaful Emarat, turnover has jumped by more than two-thirds from Dh569 million on Sunday to Dh964m yesterday, while the DFM's General Index has fallen by 2.4 per cent over the same period.

"There's no doubt we are seeing selling pressure and there is a lot of selling coming from Western institutions, who are reducing their exposure in both their end of the world and ours," said Ahmad Shahin, Shuua Capital equities strategist. "I wouldn't expect a pick-up in volumes from current levels. Continued geo-political tensions are weighing on the market even though regional stock markets are currently trading at fundamentally attractive levels."

Many analysts said the previous low trading was a positive sign because it indicated investors were unwilling to sell at those prices, but with turnover rising, prices are now under renewed threat.

However, Shuaa's strategist Shahin disagrees with this theory and warns the market is too difficult to call at present.