Abu Dhabi index leads major Gulf markets higher

Major stock markets in the Gulf rose in early trade on Tuesday, with the Abu Dhabi index boosted by gains in International Holding's shares following a sharp rise in its second-quarter profit.

Saudi Arabia's benchmark index was up 0.2pc, with Al Rajhi Bank rising 0.7pc and oil giant Saudi Aramco increasing 0.3pc.

Aramco is moving ahead with plans to boost crude output capacity by 1 million barrels per day (bpd) to 13 million bpd despite cuts in capital expenditure this year and next year, the state oil group's CEO Amin Nasser said on Monday.

Jarir Marketing Company gained 1.5pc.

The Saudi retailer proposed a higher dividend of 1.70 riyal per share for the second quarter versus 1.40 riyal a year earlier.

In Abu Dhabi, the share index rose 0.7pc, buoyed by a 5.7pc jump in International Holding.

The aquaculture firm reported a net profit of 670.3 million dirhams for the second quarter, up from 683,000 dirhams a year earlier.

Dubai's main share index gained 0.5pc, led by a 0.9pc rise in Emirates NBD Bank and a 0.8pc increase in blue-chip developer Emaar Properties.

The index's gains, however, were capped by losses at Air Arabia, which dropped 1.8pc.

The budget airliner swung to a second-quarter loss of 239 million dirhams ($65.07 million) after passenger traffic collapsed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, it said on Monday.

The United Arab Emirates' only listed airline carried 80,000 passengers in the April to June period, according to Reuters calculations based on a company statement on Monday.

That compared with 2.59 million passengers in the same quarter last year, when it made a profit of 210 million dirhams.

The Qatari index rose 0.3pc, helped by a 1.9pc gain in petrochemical firm Industries Qatar.