Most major Gulf bourses gain on corporate earnings

Major stock markets in the Gulf closed higher on Monday, with the Saudi index leading gains after a slew of strong corporate earnings.

Saudi Arabia's benchmark index rose 0.9%, boosted by a 1.8% gain in Al Rajhi Bank and a 8.9% surge in Bank Al Jazira, which reported an increase in its quarterly net profit.

Elsewhere, Saudi National Bank (SNB) closed 0.9% higher. The kingdom's largest lender posted a 20.3% rise in first-quarter net profit on Monday with lower impairments and higher fees, in a sign that the economy has been recovering from last year's pandemic lockdowns.

In Dubai, the main share index gained 0.7%, with Emirates NBD Bank advancing 2.1%, while Dubai Islamic Bank , the United Arab Emirates' largest lender, closed 0.9% higher.

The Abu Dhabi index added 0.5%, bolstered by a 0.7% gain in top lender First Abu Dhabi Bank while telecoms giant Etisalat was up 0.6%.

Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank finished 2.3% higher, after the United Arab Emirates' third-biggest lender reported soaring profit as it recovers from impairments linked to troubled hospital operator NMC Health.

ADCB reported first-quarter net profit of 1.1 billion dirhams ($299.50 million), a 436% increase year-on-year.

In Qatar, the benchmark gained 0.4%, bolstered by a 3.4% jump in Commercial Bank after the lender reported a net profit of 602.7 million riyals ($165.58 million) for the first-quarter, up from 402.1 million a year earlier.

Among others, petrochemical maker Industries Qatar gained 0.4% following an increase in its first-quarter net profit.

Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index fell 0.7%, with most its individual stocks in negative territory, including Fawry for Banking Technology, which declined 2.8%.