Dubai Financial Market Co. (DFM.DU: Quote, Profile, Research) (DFM) said on Saturday its second-quarter profit nearly doubled compared with the first quarter as the value of shares traded on Dubai's bourse surged.

The company said it made 185 million dirhams ($50.38 million) in profit from operations in the second quarter. It made 95 million dirhams in the first quarter.

The value of trading nearly doubled to 83 billion dirhams in the second quarter compared with 43 billion dirhams in the first quarter, DFM chairman Essa Kazim said in a statement.

First-half net profit reached 748 million dirhams, DFM said. First-half earnings included profit of 468 million dirhams from the company's $435 million share sale last November.

The bourse made 563 million dirhams in the first quarter of this year.

The firm expects to earn as much as 1.2 billion dirhams this year, helped by new regulations lowering the minimum sale for public offerings, Kazim told Reuters in May.

A new law, to be introduced in the second half, would allow a lower minimum public float of 30 percent, down from the current 55 percent, on new offerings, he had said. This is likely to encourage more companies to seek listings, Kazim added.

The main index of Dubai's bourse (.DFMGI: Quote, Profile, Research) has risen 9.39 percent this year. DFM shares, which closed on Thursday at 3.29 dirhams, have gained 40 percent this year.
Republication or redistribution ofReuters content, including by caching, framing or similar means, is expresslyprohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters and the Reuterssphere logo are registered trademarks and trademarks of the Reuters group ofcompanies around the world.