By: Mahmoud Gamal
Abu Dhabi – Mubasher: The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) concluded Tuesday’s session in the red, shrugging off earlier gains amid pressure from banking sector stocks.
The general index shed 0.1% or 4.39 points and closed at 4,180.83 points.
Raed Diab, vice president at KAMCO Investment Co., commented that the ADX was unable to maintain its earlier gains despite the rise in oil prices amid renewed hopes that the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) will reach an agreement to cut production in their next meeting.
The rise in the ADX’s volume of trades compared to Monday’s session confirms that selling is focused on medium and heavy-weight stocks, Diab told Mubasher, noting that liquidity levels remain low on the ADX.
A total of 153.25 million shares changed hands on Tuesday, down from 231.56 million on Monday, while turnover dropped to AED 228 million from AED 349.72 million in the previous session.
The services sector led fallers, losing 2.9% after the National Corporation for Tourism and Hotels plunged 9.7% and Abu Dhabi National Hotels retreated 4.7%.
The banking sector was down 0.24% after First Gulf Bank (FGB) and Bank of Sharjah declined 1.27% and 1.32%, respectively.
On the other hand, the real estate sector grew 1.08% backed by Aldar Properties’ 1.24% gain, while the investment sector increased 1.6% after Waha Capital added 1.7%.
Fears of a decline may be renewed of the ADX’s general index retreats below the strong support level of 4,175 points, which may result in an extended drop towards 4,100, Diab told Mubasher.
A rise above the level of 4,215 points will prompt the index towards further gains towards 4,255 points, the analyst added.
Translated by: Nada Adel Sobhi
