UAE stock exchange benchmarks extend winning streak in May

UAE stock markets extended their winning streak in May, marking a second consecutive month of gains, driven by the government’s ongoing economic diversification efforts.

Dubai Financial Market performance

Recommended For You

Bitcoin wavers amid Trump’s tariff shock, but bulls eye long-term breakout

Adnoc unlocks $220 million in savings in emissions-reduction drive

'Saiyaara' trailer: Ahaan Panday, Aneet Padda portray multiple emotions in Mohit Suri's directorial

Ukraine says Russia launched largest drone, missile attack of war

UAE becomes first country to approve oral drug for immune thrombocytopenia

 

According to a report by Kamco Invest, the Dubai Financial Market (DFM) General Index rose 3.3 per cent in May, closing at 5,480.5 points — ranking second among GCC peers. This brought its year-to-date gain to 6.2 per cent. All eight sector indices posted gains during the month. The materials index posted the steepest gain at 9.1 per cent, followed by the industrial index, which advanced 6.2 per cent. The financial index improved by 4.4 per cent in May, closing at 3,806.6 points, mainly supported by double-digit gains in several key companies within the sector, including Dubai Insurance Co (+24.8 per cent) and Naeem Investment Holding (+14.8 per cent). Meanwhile, the real estate index — the largest weighted index among the DFM indices — gained a marginal 0.1 per cent during the month. Slight share price increases in companies such as Tecom (+1.6 per cent) and Emaar Properties (+0.4 per cent) contributed to the overall marginal improvement of the index. The utilities index rose by 0.8 per cent to close May at 980.5 points, as a 1.9 per cent increase in the share price of Dewa helped offset a 5.0 per cent decline in Empower and a 1.1 per cent drop in Tabreed, keeping the overall index in positive territory during the month.

Top gainers and losers in Dubai

According to Bloomberg’s monthly stock performance data, Amlak Finance led the list of top gainers in May with a notable 30.2 per cent surge in its share price. It was followed by Dubai Insurance and Naeem Investment, which recorded gains of 24.8 per cent and 14.8 per cent, respectively. On the decliners’ side, Al Mazaya Holding registered the steepest drop with a 16.5 per cent decline, followed by NIH and Dubai National Insurance, with declines of 16.4 per cent and 15.2 per cent, respectively, during the month.

Trading activity in Dubai

Trading activity on the exchange was mixed in May. The total volume of shares traded declined by 3.6 per cent, reaching 4.5 billion shares compared to 4.7 billion shares in April 2025. In contrast, the total value of shares traded rose by 17.5 per cent to Dh15.1 billion in May vs. Dh12.8 billion in April 2025. Dewa topped the monthly trading volume chart, with 994.1 million traded shares followed by Salik and Talabat at 465.7 million and 397.4 million shares, respectively. In terms of trading value, Emaar Properties led with Dh3.1 billion worth of shares traded, followed by Dewa and Salik at Dh2.7 billion and Dh2.6 billion, respectively.

Abu Dhabi market performance

In Abu Dhabi, the FTSE ADX General Index rose 1.6 per cent during the month following a moderate increase of 1.8 per cent in the previous month. The index ended May at 9,685.1 points, bringing its year-to-date performance for 2025 to 2.8 per cent. Sectoral performance on the exchange was evenly split, with five out of ten registering declines, while the remaining five recorded gains. The overall gain in the FTSE ADX General Index was driven by advances in the energy, financial, real estate, and utilities indices. The energy index posted the steepest gain, climbing 4.4 per cent to 2,199.7 points, as two out of the four constituent companies recorded share price increases, led by a 7.7 per cent rise in Adnoc Distribution’s share price during the month. The utilities index followed closely with a gain of 3.8 per cent, closing at 13,071.2 points, supported by a 3.8 per cent share price increase in its sole constituent company, Abu Dhabi National Energy Co, during May. On the other hand, the health care index recorded the sharpest decline among all indices, falling by 4.7 per cent as three out of the four companies in the sector experienced share price drops during the month, led by a 5.7 per cent decline in PureHealth’s share price.

Top gainers and losers in Abu Dhabi

In terms of monthly stock performance, Presight AI led the gainers’ chart for May with a substantial 32.5 per cent increase in its share price. It was followed by Phoenix Group and Sudatel, which recorded gains of 18.4 per cent and 15.9 per cent, respectively. On the decliners’ side, Al Wathba National Insurance Company registered the sharpest fall, with a 24.8 per cent drop in its share price during May, followed by Insurance House Co. and United Arab Bank, which posted declines of 13.1 per cent and 10.7 per cent, respectively.

Trading activity in Abu Dhabi

Trading activity on the exchange was mixed during May. The total volume of shares traded declined by 8.1 per cent, reaching 6.9 billion shares, compared to 7.6 billion shares in April 2025. Conversely, the total value of traded shares rose by 18.2 per cent, amounting to Dh30.6 billion in May, up from Dh25.9 billion in the previous month. Adnoc Gas Co. topped the most active stocks by volume with 1.4 billion shares traded, followed by Multiply Group and Phoenix Group, which recorded trading volumes of 1.0 billion shares and 499.5 million shares, respectively. In terms of value traded, Adnoc Gas also led with Dh4.6 billion worth of shares changing hands, followed by International Holdings Company PJSC and Al Dar Properties Co., with traded values of Dh4.56 billion and Dh2.8 billion, respectively.

The UAE stock market capitalization is projected to reach $1.02 trillion in 2025, with an expected annual growth rate of 3.2% into 2026, according to data from Statista. This growth is underpinned by strong investor interest, economic diversification, and government-led initiatives aimed at enhancing market liquidity and sustainability.

Somshankar Bandyopadhyay

Somshankar Bandyopadhyay is a News Editor with close to three decades of experience. Currently, he m...Read More

somshankar@khaleejtimes.com