UAE equities decline as domestic investors book profits on small gains

Dubai: Both Dubai and Abu Dhabi bourses started the week lower than where they left last week with some of the big chips declining as domestic and the GCC investors continued to take profits on small gains.

The Dubai Financial Market General Index fell 0.53 per cent yesterday, to close at 5,793.38. The Abu Dhabi market was down 0.65 per cent at 5,111.70.03.

Emaar Properties was down 1.28 per cent closing at Dh11.60. The other major losers were Dubai Financial Market, which lost 1. 71 per cent, Air Arabia declined 1.50 per cent and Dubai Islamic Bank ended 0.87 per cent lower.

"Local investors trade on a much shorter time span than foreign investors. When some of the big cap stocks are up 2 or 3 per cent, they will always be tempted to take profit," said Julian Bruce, director of institutional equity sales at EFG-Hermes.

"There is no significant momentum at the moment for DFM to break through the resistance level of 5,850 and Abu Dhabi to keep on going upwards. So, if the market does stall a little bit you will see the domestic and GCC investors come in as sellers."

The fall in US markets on Friday could have been a factor too. "The perception amongst the local investors is that till tomorrow when foreign players are back in the market they will be tempted to also take some profit and take some money off the table."

On the Abu Dhabi bourse, of the 45 companies which traded, 28 went down, 13 advanced and four were unchanged. Here also, sector-wise, real estate declined, going down 1.86 per cent.

Bank and energy shares sank 0.72 per cent and 0.87 per cent respectively. Aldar Properties slid 2.77 per cent, and First Gulf Bank and National Bank of Abu Dhabi were both down 2.25 and 1.38 per cent respectively.