Most Gulf bourses extend losses on economic growth fears

Most stock markets in the Gulf extended losses on Monday, as investors remained worried about aggressive monetary tightening tipping the world into a recession.

The main share index in Dubai, the Middle East’s travel and tourism hub, dropped 1.6%, as most of the stocks were in negative territory including blue-chip developer Emaar Properties, which was down 2.6%.

In Abu Dhabi, the index declined 1.1%, with the country’s biggest lender First Abu Dhabi Bank losing 1%.

Last week, the United Arab Emirates’ central bank increased its base rate by three quarters of a percentage point to 3%, mirroring the U.S. Federal Reserve’s biggest hike since 1994. Central banks in Qatar and Saudi Arabia also raised their rates.

The UAE dirham, like most Gulf currencies, is pegged to the dollar.

The Qatari index fell 0.4%, hit by a 4.5% fall in sharia-compliant lender Masraf Al Rayan.

Saudi leads decline in Gulf bourses on growth worries

Bucking the trend, Saudi Arabia’s benchmark index gained 0.6%, a day after it registered its biggest intraday fall in nearly seven months.

Al Rajhi Bank rose 1.1%, while Sahara International Petrochemical Company advanced 4.2%.

The Saudi market rebounded as traders moved to buy the dip after two weeks of price declines, said Wael Makarem, senior market strategist at Exness.

“Overall the market remains soft and could see an impact from the turbulent oil market.”

Oil prices, a key catalyst for the Gulf’s financial markets, were stable as tightening supplies offset concerns about slowing global economic growth.

Saudi Arabia’s April crude exports rose to a two-year peak of 7.382 million barrels per day (bpd) in April, data from the Joint Organizations Data Initiative (JODI) showed on Monday.

Outside the Gulf, Egypt’s blue-chip index retreated for a seventh session in a row to close 0.5% lower.

According to Makarem, local and regional investors moved in to buy the dip, while the market is still witnessing selling pressure from international investors looking to cut their risks.

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SAUDI ARABIA rose 0.6% to 11,362

ABU DHABI    fell 1.1% to 9,354

DUBAI        down 1.6% to 3,210

QATAR        eased 0.4% to 12,070

EGYPT        lost 0.5% to 9,680

BAHRAIN      dropped 0.1% to 1,831

OMAN added   0.4% to 4,137

KUWAIT down  0.2% to 7,929
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