Stocks in Dubai Financial Market maintained rally on Wednesday, buoyed by shares in Arabtec, amid speculations on Ismaik is near to make a deal with Aabar to sell his stake in the company.

The Dubai benchmark stock index ticked up 0.23% or 11.62 points to 4986.13pts, keeping rally alive for eighth consecutive session.

“Investors are still betting on Arabtec. They injected more cash in this stock on hope Ismaik is almost near to sell his stake to Aabar,” said Rashid Attia, a senior equity analyst at Schroders.

Shares in Arabtec climbed 4.81%, its best daily gain since July 31 and another 5-week peak, closing at AED 4.79.

According to the Dubai Financial Market (DFM), Ismaik has cut his from 28.85% to 28.77%. Around 3.52 million shares worth AED 6.14 million ($4 million) were sold.

 Aabar Company, the second largest shareholder in Arabtec currently holds 18.94%.

The stock was also in a heavy trade, topping the most active by value and volume.

Meanwhile, shares in heavyweights Emaar and Dubai Financial Market lost 0.48% and 1.14% respectively, limiting the market’s gains on Wednesday.

Turnover hit AED 1.84 billion, while volume stood at AED 617.16 million shares.