Abu Dhabi: The UAE’s stock markets ended higher on Monday along with other global markets that saw a surge after jobs data from the US came out way below expectations.

The announcement from the US revived hopes that the Federal Reserve could postpone hiking interest rates.

In the UAE, the Dubai Financial Market (DFM) index rose 1.8 per cent to reach 3,658.86, while the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) general index went up 1.04 per cent to end the day at 4,564.54.

Trade values remained low, however, with Dh386 million traded in Dubai and Dh279.3 million traded in Abu Dhabi. Analysts attributed the weak liquidity to a lack of catalysts in the market as investors await third quarter results.

Marwan Shurrab, fund manager and head of trading at Vision Investments and Holdings, attributed positive performance in the UAE’s markets to an upbeat sentiment globally.

“The only downside I could say is that turnovers are still extremely low. I assume Q3 results should play a big role as the main catalysts. Nevertheless, global economies and global sentiment are key catalysts that could drive the markets forward in case we see a rebound in oil prices, or strengthening in Chinese or European economies,” he said.

The third quarter of this year, which ended just a few days ago, saw this year’s lowest liquidity in the UAE, with Bloomberg reporting that global markets also shed $11 trillion (Dh40.40 trillion) worth of shares.

As for whether the jump in the markets on Monday is merely a correction, that remains to be seen, Shurrab said.

“The outlook is conservative. We’re mainly focusing on defensive factors to avoid the volatility and the low liquidity that the market is currently facing,” he said.

On DFM, the market’s powerhouses ended higher as Emaar went up 3.71 per cent, DFM share prices grew 4.17 per cent, Dubai Parks rose 3.28 per cent, Arabtec gained 2.12 per cent, Damac Properties was up one per cent, and Dubai Islamic Bank went up 1.19 per cent.

In the capital, Sudatel Telecom Group topped the gainers’ list with an 11.29 per cent increase, followed by Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (Taqa) with 3.85 per cent, Eshraq Properties with 2.99 per cent, Aldar Properties with 2.95 per cent, and Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank with 2.61 per cent.

Of the 31 stocks traded on DFM, 25 went up, four went down, and two remained unchanged. Of the 30 stocks traded on ADX, 18 advanced, eight declined, and four remained flat.

Elsewhere, India’s Sensex climbed over 550 points, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng jumped 348 points, and Frankfurt’s DAX was up 237 points (at 3pm, German timing).