Aggressive buying seen in insurance shares on DFM

Dubai: Traders resorted to aggressive buying in insurance shares as Dar Al Takaful hit an upper circuit for the second day in a row amid positive moves on the Dubai index.

Dar Al Takaful closed nearly 15 per cent higher at Dh0.885, bringing total gains over the past two sessions to 30 per cent.

“Volumes are gradually increasing in Dar Al Takaful with the rise in price, hinting at accumulation and [this] may trigger a big move similar to what we witnessed in 2016,” Shiv Prakash, senior analyst with First Abu Dhabi Bank Securities (FABS), said in a note.

Dar Al Takaful swiftly rose to Dh1.353 on April 2, 2016 from a low of 0.451 in June, with the share’s price registering 200 per cent gains.

FABS had a buy at Dh0.77 on Sunday for a target of Dh1.05/1.46. A total of 7.8 million shares were outstanding on the buy side on Sunday, which analysts say is hinting at a higher opening.

Due to the price action seen in Dar Al Takaful, traders also placed their bets on Salama and Aman, which closed 5 and 8 per cent higher at Dh0.425 and Dh0.759.

The Dubai Financial Market (DFM) General Index closed 0.55 per cent higher at 2,900.16 while Emaar Properties gained 0.80 per cent to close at Dh5.06.

The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) General Index closed 0.20 per cent higher at 4,696.20.

Dana Gas ended the session 2.88 per cent higher at Dh1.07, while Union National Bank rose 1.13 per cent higher to Dh3.59.

Elsewhere in the Gulf region, Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul index closed 0.40 per cent higher at 8,395.74.

Alinma Bank was 0.94 per cent up at 21.52 Saudi riyals, while Saudi Basic Industries Corp rose 1.1 per cent to close at 128.20 riyals.

The Muscat MSM 30 index gained 0.36 per cent to end yesterday 4,456.76 while the Kuwait all share index closed 0.21 per cent lower at 4,965.12.

Overall, investors’ anticipation of second-quarter results, coupled with the summer lull, are going to be the main drivers in the coming period for trading activity in the region, which is expected to be range bound with subdued volumes, Al Masah Capital said in a note.