Dubai: The Dubai Financial Market (DFM) index was little changed on Tuesday, sliding 0.58 per cent to close at 2,832.98, as it continued to trade in narrow ranges.
Trading values on the bourse were also lower from a session earlier, at Dh299.9 million, 18 per cent of which were in Air Arabia’s shares.
The airline’s stock was the most traded on DFM, and ended the day 0.4 per cent lower.
Meanwhile, the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) general index inched up 0.13 per cent, nearing the closely-watched 5,000 level mark to end at 4,992.63.
The index had seen gains over the last week over buying activity in banking stocks amid news about a possible merger in the sector.
Technical analyst Osama Al Ashry said he expected the index to see further gains, with 5,080 being the next target.
He added that he expected Abu Dhabi’s index to reach that level this month, pointing that heavyweights on the index such as First Abu Dhabi Bank have more upside potential.
As for the DFM index, Al Ashry said he expected it to slide.
“The index has a target of 2,750, and I do expect it to touch that level. From there, it may rebound, but usually, one support [level] leads to another,” he said. “I can’t be optimistic about the DFM index when, during the third quarter of the year, it’s trading near its lowest levels for 2018.”
Discussing specific stocks, Al Ashry said he expected Emaar, which on Tuesday ended at Dh4.94, to fall to Dh4.7 and then Dh4.5, dragging with it the Dubai index.
Emaar’s share prices were down 1 per cent, and were among the most actively traded on DFM. GFH Financial Group slid 0.69 per cent, and Dubai Islamic Bank fell 0.38 per cent, as Drake and Scull International fell 3.43 per cent.
Salama’s share prices, however, continued to gain, rising 2.37 per cent as the company said that Abu Dhabi Financial Group (ADFG) transferred its shares in the insurance company to Ajman Bank.
ADFG has a 20 per cent shareholding in Salama share capital, the company confirmed.
