Stock markets in the Gulf fell today, Tuesday, amid weak trading ahead of the expected Eid Al-Fitr holiday this week, but the Kuwaiti index closed higher.
Dubai’s index fell 0.1%, with Emaar Properties dropping 1%, leading the losses.
The Abu Dhabi index fell 0.1% after First Abu Dhabi Bank, the largest in the UAE, fell 0.3%.
Daniel Taqi El Din, CEO of the Middle East and North Africa region at B.D. Swiss said the Abu Dhabi market witnessed downward pressure after an optimistic performance for more than a week, with traders trying to secure their gains.
“The decline in oil prices also affected the market,” he added.
Oil prices, a major catalyst for financial markets in the Gulf, fell for a second day on Tuesday after upbeat economic data from China failed to shift focus from a possible hike in US interest rates, as well as on broader concern about the growth outlook.
Oil was also under pressure as a result of the federal government of Iraq and the Kurdistan Regional Government taking a step towards resuming northern oil exports from the Turkish port of Ceyhan after they were halted last month.
The Qatari index fell 0.5%, due to the decline in the shares of Qatar Islamic Bank and Qatar International Islamic Bank, 1.3% and 3.5%, respectively.
The Kuwaiti index rose 0.3%.
Outside the Gulf region, the Egyptian leading stock index closed down 0.8%, with the share of the Commercial International Bank falling 6.7% and the share of Telecom Egypt 3.8%.
