The value of shares traded on the Nasdaq Dubai reached $36m in November, down from $97m in November 2010. It is also a 42 per cent fall from the previous month.

Individual investors made up 5.8 per cent of the traded value of all shares in the first 11 months of the year.

Total equities traded value in that period by individual and institutional investors amounted to $646m.

“In a challenging period for the UAE’s capital markets, in which trading values across its stock exchanges have declined, Nasdaq Dubai continues to strengthen its infrastructure and prepare for new product listings,” says Jeff Singer, chief executive officer of Nasdaq Dubai.

The main benchmark, the FTSE Nasdaq Dubai UAE 20 index, which tracks the top 20 liquid stocks listed on the Dubai Financial Market (DMF) and the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) and the Nasdaq Dubai itself has lost 20 per cent since the beginning of the year.