UAE's DFM, ADX look to close out difficult week in the positive

Dubai: The UAE stock markets – DFM and ADX – ended what’s been a difficult week for global markets on the up, and fairly good increases at that. The DFM general index closed with a 1.5% gain Friday, with Union Properties (up 6% plus) and the two Emaar stocks leading the way. Key banking stocks were in the mood to go green.

On ADX, the wider index was just under 1% plus, with notable spikes for ADNOC L&S (up 5.4%), as well for ADNOC Gas, with 2.4%. The gains fly in the face of what had been widely anticipated to be a tough end-of-the-week trading session – but that’s not how it shaped out to be. If at all the Israel-Iran situation was weighing on investor minds, it was not too obvious on Friday.

In this, UAE stocks are trending in the same upward direction that most of its Asian peers went through earlier in the day, with the Sensex spiking a solid 0.99%, up 800 points, and Hang Seng, which shot up 1.26%. On Thursday, the Saudi Tadawul too closed out the week, with a marginal gain. (flynas, the airline which listed during the week, closed at SR77.4, down on the IPO price of SR80.)

With H1-2025 drawing to a close, UAE and Gulf stocks have been showing a good measure of resilience to the economic and geopolitical headwinds that have periodically swept through the global markets.

“GCC capital markets remained resilient in the first quarter of the year with IPO proceeds 33% higher compared to the first quarter of 2024, despite a slowdown in issuances globally,” says an update from HSBC. “Similarly, M&A volumes saw their highest quarter in three years, underpinned by activity in Saudi Arabia and the UAE.” (The UK bank this week held a GCC Exchanges Conference in London.)

Nabeel Albloushi, Head of Markets & Securities Services, Middle East North Africa & Turkey  at HSBC Bank Middle East, “The UAE offers one of the most compelling growth stories and the share of global emerging markets funds with UAE exposure has surged from 35% to 65% since mid-2021.

“The breadth of sectors coming to the market – from retail and logistics to renewables – not only reflects deepening investor confidence but also gives global institutions the diversity they seek as they rebalance portfolios.”