Abu Dhabi:The DFM General Index dropped 1.66 per cent to end at 4,759.15, marking the steepest drop in a month. Of the 31 stocks traded, 22 declined, six advanced, and three remained flat.
Emaar dropped 2.86 per cent, Deyaar Development went down 2.52 per cent, and Gulf Finance House rose 2.96 per cent.
Abu Dhabi’s index, ADX Securities Index, also dropped 0.17 per cent to end at 5,162.92. Of the 35 stocks traded, 16 advanced, 15 declined, and four remained unchanged.
While Aldar Properties was the top traded in terms of value, RAK Properties had higher trade volume. Waha Capital registered a large increase with 3.75 per cent in volume.
Marwan Shurrab, fund manager and head of trading at Vision Investments & Holdings, attributed the decline in the market to the sell-offs in the US and Europe, which took place by the end of last week.
“With the downtrade in the US, investors here are reducing risk-exposure and profit taking,” Shurrab said.
However, he expected sentiment in the market to turn soon.
“Obviously the international market will always play a role, but we have some catalysts as well. The upgrade of the UAE and Qatar into emerging market status will come into effect in May, so that should drive sentiment. There’s also the anticipation of strong results by big companies from [the first quarter],” Shurrab said.
Discussing market activity in Dubai, he said there was profit taking activity on blue chips. In Abu Dhabi, investors showed interested in participation in leading real estate players such as Aldar Properties, and Waha Capital.
