Key Highlights
- CHHK, the Lunate S&P China HK Shariah ETF, traded 4.1x its 7-day average volume (AED 45.4k notional) yet fell 0.7% on the day.
- CHADX15, the Lunate FTSE ADX 15 ETF, also ran hot at 4.0x its 7-day average, closing down 0.5% on the day.
- GCCDIV, the Lunate Solactive GCC Shariah Dividend ETF, recorded a 7-day net outflow of AED 427k, the largest of any ADX-listed ETF, on 1-week performance of -1.6%.
- AMR, Americana Restaurants International PLC, was the top equity, up 2.9% on the day and 8.9% on the week.
- MANAZEL, Manazel PJSC, traded 13x its 7-day average volume (AED 40.00m), rising 5.6% on the day.
- ADNOCGAS, ADNOC Gas PLC, led turnover with AED 311.68m and posted a 7-day net inflow of AED 327.8m; IHC, International Holding Company PJSC, had the largest weekly net outflow at AED 193.1m.
- The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange became the first MENA market to offer direct access to real-time market data to Claude and other AI platforms, a structural plus for ETF pricing transparency.
Market Overview
The session's most distinctive signal came from the ETF board. Turnover in several ADX-listed funds ran far above normal, with CHHK, the Lunate S&P China HK Shariah ETF, and CHADX15, the Lunate FTSE ADX 15 ETF, both trading at roughly four times their seven-day average volume while closing lower on the day. That volume-up, price-down combination, alongside the week's largest ETF net outflow of AED 427k from GCCDIV, the Lunate Solactive GCC Shariah Dividend ETF, points to holders reducing exposure rather than accumulating. The heavier ETF activity landed the same day the exchange announced direct real-time market data access, a first for the Middle East and North Africa.
Equities told a different story. Most of the large caps advanced, led by ADPORTS, Abu Dhabi Ports Company PJSC, up 2.5% on 2.5x average volume, and FAB, First Abu Dhabi Bank, up 1.0%. But the strength was not uniform: ADNOCDIST, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company for Distribution, fell 1.2%, and IHC, International Holding Company PJSC, carried a weekly net outflow of AED 193.1m despite a flat session. The divergence between rising ETF turnover with selling pressure and a broadly firm equity tape is the day's central tension.
ETFs
CHHK was the busiest fund in relative terms among the actively traded names, moving 10,563 shares against a seven-day average of 2,567, a 4.1x ratio by Nukoud calculations based on Nukoud Analytics, for AED 45.4k of notional. The price fell 0.7% on the day, though the fund is still up 1.9% on the week. Its weekly net flow stands at AED -43k, so the heavy volume has skewed to the sell side.
CHADX15, which tracks the exchange's own FTSE ADX 15 benchmark, showed the same pattern: 3.97x normal volume, a 0.5% one-day decline and a weekly net outflow of AED 20k. That a home-market tracker traded this actively while slipping is the clearest sign the ETF selling was not confined to offshore exposures.
GCCDIV was the flow story. Only 21,957 shares changed hands, 0.38x its seven-day average, but its cumulative weekly net outflow of AED 427k is the largest of any ADX-listed ETF, against a one-week price return of -1.6%. On the other side, QUANTM, the Boreas Solactive Quantum Computing UCITS ETF, took in AED 190k of net weekly flow and is up 4.2% on the week, though Thursday's turnover was thin at 0.11x average.
Two smaller anomalies deserve a line. KWIN, the KraneShares Wahed Alternative Income Index ETF, traded 13.7x its (small) seven-day average for AED 20.2k of notional, flat on the day. AGIX, the KraneShares Artificial Intelligence & Technology ETF, rose 4.7% on the day, the best ETF price return, but on just 90 shares, too thin to read as a signal. UAEA, the Lunate S&P UAE Shariah ETF, was the steadiest domestic fund, up 0.6% on the day with AED 85k of weekly net inflow. Structural context also favours the wrapper: alongside the exchange's real-time data move, Coinbase's UAE licence positions the country as a tokenized-securities hub, part of a broader build-out of market-access infrastructure around ADX-listed products.
Equities
Equity strength was reasonably broad. AMR, Americana Restaurants International PLC, led on price, up 2.9% on the day and 8.9% on the week, though on below-average volume at 0.77x. ADPORTS, Abu Dhabi Ports Company PJSC, gained 2.5% on 2.47x its seven-day average volume, the most convincing volume-backed advance of the session. FAB, First Abu Dhabi Bank, rose 1.0% on AED 159.58m of value, 1.69x normal, and ALPHADHABI, Alpha Dhabi Holding PJSC, added 1.2%.
Turnover was dominated by ADNOCGAS, ADNOC Gas PLC, at AED 311.68m, 1.69x its average share volume, though the price closed flat. Its AED 327.8m weekly net inflow is the largest on the board. MANAZEL, Manazel PJSC, was the volume outlier, trading 115.9m shares, 13x its seven-day average by Nukoud calculations based on Nukoud Analytics, and rising 5.6% on the day.
The weak spots were concentrated. ADNOCDIST fell 1.2% on 1.47x normal volume, ALDAR, Al Dar Properties, slipped 0.8%, and IHC's AED 193.1m weekly net outflow was the largest single drain of value on the exchange over the past seven days, set against a 2.1% one-week price decline. BOROUGE, Borouge PLC, closed flat with a weekly net outflow of AED 45.6m.
