ADX surges after MSCI rebalancing

INDEX HITS HIGHEST DAILY GAIN IN A YEAR DESPITE THIN TRADING ON OTHER FRONTS

The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) general index rose 2.68 per cent to close at 4,898.15 as markets adjusted after the MSCI’s move to rebalance First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) and etisalat shares.

The index notched its highest daily gain in a year even as trading remained thin in other stocks. Traded value weighed in at Dh880 million.

FAB shares rose 3.68 per cent to close at Dh14.10 while etisalat shares were up 3.37 per cent at Dh17.18.

The rest of the market managed marginal gains.

Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB) closed 3.82 per cent higher at Dh8.15 while Dana Gas inched up 0.54 per cent to close at Dh0.93.

Meanwhile, the Dubai Financial Market (DFM) general index closed at 2,675.87, gaining 0.27 per cent on the day.

Emaar Properties added 1.78 per cent to end at Dh4.58 while Dubai Islamic Bank was 0.5 per cent higher at Dh5.27.

Dubai Investments, however, slipped to close 4 per cent lower at Dh1.29.

“The final day [Thursday] for the MSCI rebalancing also took its toll on stocks such as Dubai Investment, which kept seeing outflows while Emaar Properties failed to see the light of day following its deal with Abu Dhabi National Hotels, [touching] fresh lows,” Essam Kassabieh, senior financial analyst at Menacorp, said.

“Union Properties [and] Gulf Finance House saw some bargain-buying as investors scoured the market for some speculative gains but most came short, with the only saving grace at low volumes being Emirates NBD.”

DP World closed 8.19 per cent higher a $17.70 while Emirates NBD was 0.22 per cent to Dh9.20.

Elsewhere in the Gulf, Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index lost 0.15 per cent to end at 7,905.12. Alinma Bank slipped 0.16 per cent to 22.18 Saudi riyals.

The Qatar Exchange index closed 1.45 per cent higher at 10,602.84 while the Muscat MSM 30 index closed 1.90 per cent higher at 4,534.63.