The possibility of merging the UAE stock markets was given fresh hope after the country’s economy minister, Sultan al-Mansoori, announced the merger is still being discussed.

The ministry has appointed a committee to draw up a feasibility report, which will be evaluated by the Securities and Commodities Authority (Esca) before the end of the year.

The announcement pushed the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) General Index up 0.26 per cent to 2,593.25 and the Dubai Financial Market (DFM) General Index up 0.74 per cent to 1,655.5 on 21 March.

“If it happens, it will be great. Globally there is a trend towards consolidation of stock exchanges, so for the UAE it will create one platform and the market would welcome a consolidation of the stock exchanges,” says the head of investment banking at one of the local banks.

“It would make more sense [to combine the exchanges]. It will push things onto a bigger scale in terms of market capitalisation and would not take liquidity away from the market. From an operational point of view for traders, it would make life easier for them too,” says the source.

It was a welcome push for the ADX following a poor start to the week. ADX-listed property developers Sorouh Real Estate and Aldar Properties, which enjoyed a near-10 per cent rise after announcing plans to merge on 12 March lost 6.5 per cent and 5 per cent respectively at the beginning of the week, dragging down the ADX General Index 0.75 per cent to close at 2,606.29 on 18 March.

Falling oil prices pushed the ADX benchmark down 0.7 per cent on Tuesday 20 March to close at 2586.53 points.

The Egyptian Exchange (EGX) began the week on 18 March on a low following the announcement of the Coptic Pope’s death on Saturday. Investors pulled back from trading as a result, dragging the EGX30 benchmark down by 2.03 per cent to close at 5,064.4 points, putting an end to the three session rally of the previous week. Just 29 stocks out of the 165 listed gained. The fall continued on 19 March with the main index losing 0.62 per cent to close at 5,032.98 before gaining some ground the following day to 0.92 per cent as investors found the appetite to trade once again.

The high oil prices earlier on in the week helped push up the performance of the oil rich nations. Confidence in the Middle East markets was also given a boost on 21 March after US state department decided to exempt 11 states from sanctions against reducing oil imports from Iran.

Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) enjoyed a three-day rise closing at 6,233.4 points on 18 March, up 0.53 per cent since close on Thursday 15 March. Advances in the investment and real estate sector were driven by the $107 per barrel for oil.

Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul also enjoyed a strong performance early in the week, rising to its highest since September 2008. On 18 March, the main benchmark closed at 7,615.69 points.