DUBAI: Gulf markets ended lower on Thursday as the Houthis threatened more attacks on Saudi Arabia, putting the country’s benchmark index on track for a sixth weekly loss.
The Saudi index dropped 0.3 percent, pulled down by a 3.1 percent slide in ACWA Power Company and 0.4 percent fall in oil behemoth Saudi Aramco.
On Wednesday, Yemen’s Houthis pledged to keep attacking airports and oil facilities in the kingdom. The threat came a day after a Houthi strike caused extensive damage to Aramco’s headquarters in Dhahran, where a fire spread across several floors, three people with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
Qatar’s index led losses in regional stocks, falling 1.2 percent to its lowest level in more than six years.
Dubai’s main index lost 1.1 percent as top lender Emirates NBD slid 1.7 percent. Abu Dhabi’s index slipped 0.3 percent.
On Thursday, the International Monetary Fund warned a long war in the Middle East, and further disruption to energy production, shipping routes or critical infrastructure posed the biggest risk to economies in the Middle East and Central Asia.
Outside the Gulf, Egypt’s blue-chip index advanced 1.5 percent, building on the prior session’s rebound, which broke a six-day slide.
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