The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) demonstrated strong performance in the first quarter of 2025, showing significant improvements in liquidity and investment activity compared to the same period in 2024, particularly from foreign and institutional investors.
ADX data reveals that the value of trades by foreign investors (both buying and selling) surged by approximately 62.2%, reaching around AED 69.79 billion in Q1 2025, up from AED 43.03 billion in Q1 2024.
Foreign net investment saw a remarkable rise of 151%, growing from about AED 3.4 billion to over AED 8.5 billion, reflecting increased confidence among international investors in the UAE market.
The share of foreign investors in total trading volume increased to 42% in Q1 2025, up from 31% in the same period of 2024, marking an 11-percentage-point rise.
Market capitalisation rose by around 3.2%, exceeding AED 2.93 trillion by the end of Q1 2025, compared to AED 2.84 trillion at the close of Q1 2024.
Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) saw a significant rise, with their market value growing by 109% to approximately AED 1.64 billion, compared to AED 784.4 million, signalling growing investor interest in this asset class.
In terms of liquidity, total trading value increased by nearly 21%, reaching AED 83.3 billion in Q1 2025, compared to AED 68.95 billion in Q1 2024. The trading volume surged by 39%, rising to over 22.45 billion shares from 16.11 billion, while the number of executed trades grew by approximately 41%, reaching 1.35 million, up from 961,800 trades during the same period last year.
Institutional investors also recorded a 22% rise in trading volume (buying and selling), reaching over AED 134.9 billion in Q1 2025, compared to approximately AED 110.6 billion during the same period in 2024.
