Market makes them philosophical

Abu Dhabi: One year ago, Hassan Al Hout was driving a taxi on Beirut's unstable streets. Today he sits staring at a computer screen in the Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange. Next to him is his brother.

"He got me into this. It's all his fault. I still have my taxi at home if this keeps going like this," Hassan laughs and points at his older brother Ahmad. The pair is a prime reflection of the sudden changes in the economy.

"When I came to visit my brother here last year, I found that he was trading stocks. I came with him one day and now I am hooked," Hassan says while his brother has hardly taken his eyes off of the numerical display with all the arrows pointing down.

In the stock market, the duo is known as the big and small "hamour", referring to the diversity between their experiences.

Ahmad got into the stock market five years back. He bought when the prices were on the rise and was forced to sell. "This is the pattern of investments, you win and you lose. But you always take a risk," Ahmad says while his eyes are fixed on the screen.

The sombre mood of the room is an indication that the prices are still down, but most people are hopeful that things will start to look up. Salim Hussain is perhaps one of the oldest men in the room. At 61, Hussain has seen markets fall and rise. "I am used to this. It's nothing new," he says with a smile that would not reveal that he has lost thousands of dirhams in the past week. For three hours a day, Hussain comes and sits at his favourite seat facing the display. "If I had to, I would sell everything but my house."

For 54-year-old Saleh Al Aamiri these past weeks have been a never-ending cycle. "When you lose money, you try to gain it back and when you make money you want more so you end up running in circles," Al Aamiri says.