The UAE's stock market rally continued yesterday with the Dubai benchmark index gaining 1.08 per cent to close at 4,233.30 and the Abu Dhabi general index advancing by 0.34 per cent to 3,332.84.

The combined value of shares traded exceeded Dh2.38 billion, of which the Dubai Financial Market (DFM) accounted for Dh1.77 billion.

The DFM scrip maintained its leading position as the most-traded in terms of value and volume in Dubai, losing 0.62 per cent to close at Dh3.20.

Liquidity was evenly spread across the board indicating a healthy sign of market recovery. "This seems to be an uptrend, as the market has been stagnant for more than three months towards bottom marks," said Sharif Abdul Khalik, dealing room manager at Al Futtaim HC-Securities.
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Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) continued its rally, gaining 1.98 per cent to close at Dh9.25. Many market observers are worried about the feedback on the initial public offering for 3.2 billion shares of Deyaar, DIB's real estate arm. "The demand seems to be very weak on this offering," Abdul Khalik said.

Emaar Properties advanced by 0.85 per cent to Dh11.90, even as investors still await the evaluation of the land offered by Dubai Holding for more than Dh3 billion worth of shares. "Most probably the evaluation will price the land higher by 15 or 20 per cent than the Dh3 billion price," said Abdul Khalik.

With the summer approaching, many analysts expect the market to slowdown slightly. But the uptrend is expected to continue given that foreign purchases may account for 25 to 40 per cent of the value of shares traded in Dubai.

"By the end of 2007, the market index might approach the 5,000 point mark," said Hamood Abdullah, general manager of Emirates International Securities.