The Dubai Financial Market index ended trading on Wednesday lower, as investors awaited the release of the minutes from the US Federal Reserve's monetary policy meeting, seeking new clues about the path of interest rates.

According to trading data, the Dubai Financial Market index closed down 0.28%, losing 16.43 points to reach a level of 5841.85 points.

The session saw the trading of 188.15 million shares with a total value of 598.91 million dirhams through 14,645 transactions.

The market witnessed a large direct transaction involving shares of Etihad Energy Holding Company, with a total value of AED 52.2 million. The transaction included approximately 17 million shares, representing 0.5% of the company's capital, at a price of AED 3.07 per share, compared to a market price of AED 3.01.

The market value of listed shares declined to AED 956.782 billion by the end of today’s session, compared to AED 961.490 billion in yesterday’s session, a decrease of AED 4.708 billion, representing a decline of approximately 0.49%.

Regarding stock market activity, shares of 18 companies rose, while shares of 22 companies declined and shares of 11 companies remained stable.

The share of Al Salam Bank Sudan topped the list of the most declining shares with a 3.42% decrease, while the share of the Islamic Arab Insurance Company - Salama topped the list of the most rising shares with a 6.42% increase.

On the most active side, Emaar Properties shares led trading in terms of value with approximately AED 152.25 million, while Union Properties shares led in terms of volume with approximately 42.37 million shares.

The performance of the sectors in the Dubai Financial Market varied; consumer services topped the list of sectors that rose by 0.780%, followed by utilities by 0.473%, and industry by 0.044%.

In contrast, the basic materials sector led the list of declines with a 3.014% drop, followed by consumer goods with a 1.503% decrease, financial services with a 0.835% drop, telecommunications with a 0.533% decrease, and finally real estate with a 0.047% decrease.