By: Mahmoud Gamal
Dubai – Mubasher: The UAE stock markets are likely to maintain the bull run on Thursday amid the improved investment appetite of some traders on the back of listed-banks’ solid and above-expectation financial results, analysts told Mubasher.
By the end of Wednesday’s trading session, the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange’s (ADX) general index jumped 1.12% to 4,830.42 points, its highest level in three years, while the Dubai Financial Market’s (DFM) general index edged up 0.65% to 2,944.67 points.
UAE-listed banks’ strong interim financial results have pushed the local markets up on Wednesday, general manager at Al Sharhan Stock Center Jamal Ajaj said.
First Abu Dhabi Bank’s stock has leaped near 3% yesterday after posting robust results that beat estimates, Ajaj added.
The UAE’s twin bourses are still suffering from thin liquidity, which coincides with the summer holiday season, he stressed.
Ajaj indicated that liquidity in the DFM is still affected by some of the listed-firms’ exposure to The Abraaj Group crisis.
For his part, senior financial analyst at Menacorp Financial Services Issam Kassabieh said that the ADX is currently stable and its performance has improved more than the DFM, on the back of FAB.
Kassabieh praised FAB’s financial results, projecting its allocations to continue falling and its profits to rise by the end of 2018 as the bank’s management seeks to maintain its policy of controlling costs.
Translated by: Mai Ezz El-Din
