Liquidity is set to more than double last year's figure as investors pile their cash more aggressively into local stocks this year, according to brokers.
Traded value on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange and Dubai Financial Market reached Dh118 billion so far, compared with Dh74bn traded for the whole of last year.
"The market has surprised everybody," said Mohammed Ali Yasin, the managing director of National Bank of Abu Dhabi's brokerage arm, who expects the market to more than double by the end of the year. "The quarterly results gave it a big push and confidence levels have returned to 2007 highs."
The ADX General Index has surged 58.3 per cent so far this year, trading at 3,929.41 points. The DFM General Index has rocketed 71.7 per cent to 2,674.15.
"Liquidity is continuing to come in," Mr Yasin said. "So whenever the markets experience corrections, we don't see people panicking and selling. On the contrary, we see people trying to come in and buy."
The recovery in investor appetite for local stocks has triggered a hiring spree at an Abu Dhabi-based company that has poached division heads after recruiting a number of brokers to support its expansion.
Nabil Al Rantisi, Mena Corp's managing director of brokerage, said he plans to have 50 front-office staff in the "near future" if market conditions allow.
The company hired Talal Al Batayneh as the deputy managing director of brokerage for equity sales and Raed Salama as the head of trading for its Dubai office.
Mr Al Batayneh and Mr Salama were previously employed at Mena Corp's rival Al Ramz Securities, which is also based in Abu Dhabi.
Mena Corp also took two professionals from another prominent brokerage firm.
The company hired Yahya Issawi, who was head of sales at Mubasher Financial Services, and Firas Al Zghaibi, who was a senior investment adviser also at Mubasher.
Hesham Khairy is now head of trading, equity sales for institutional clients. Mr Khairy was previously vice president institutional sales trader for foreign clients with EFG Hermes.
