The Dubai Financial Market (DFM) declined for the third session in five as trading volume slumped to its lowest this year. Trading volume on the DFM yesterday stood at 28.5 million shares. Arabtec, the country's biggest developer, dropped 1.2 per cent to Dh1.66 after HSBC cut its price target for the company. Emaar Properties and Air Arabia were also among the biggest decliners as each fell by nearly 1 per cent.
The DFM General Index ended the day down by almost half a percentage point at 1,493.46. DP World, the global port operator, dropped slightly after EFG-Hermes warned the stock was overpriced. The company closed at 49 US cents on the NASDAQ Dubai. Much of the rest of the region also closed lower as market activity fell off because of Ramadan. Analysts said regional markets were often guided by trading trends on international markets, especially in the quieter summer months.
"Last Ramadan we had good buying activity, mostly because US markets were doing very well," said Saad Chalabi, an institutional trader at AlRamz Securities in Abu Dhabi. "This summer, global markets aren't doing very well, which is leaving us in limbo." The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange General Index ended trading largely flat, falling 0.3 per cent to 2,501.63. Dana Gas, the oil and gas explorer and producer, was the most actively traded stock in the capital, but it closed unchanged at 78 fils.
Property stocks led the decliners in the capital. Aldar Properties, Abu Dhabi's largest property developer, dropped 2.2 per cent to Dh2.18. Sorouh Real Estate, Abu Dhabi's second biggest developer, dropped 1.8 per cent to Dh1.60. The Saudi Tadawul All-Share Index was off 1.5 per cent at 6,018.27. The decline was linked to a combination of weak crude prices, global equity market declines and low volumes attributed to Ramadan.
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