DUBAI: Most Gulf stock markets closed lower on Tuesday, as falling oil prices and expectations of an interest rate hike by the US Federal Reserve subdued investor sentiment, while Abu Dhabi bucked trend.
Oil prices - a key catalyst for the Gulf’s financial markets - slipped by more than 1% on Tuesday with March Brent crude futures 1.25% lower at $83.97 a barrel by 1414 GMT.
Investors expect the Federal Reserve will raise rates by 25 basis points on Wednesday, and any deviation from that script would be a real shock.
Most Gulf currencies are pegged to the US dollar, and Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar usually mirror US monetary policy changes.
The benchmark index in Saudi Arabia lost 0.2%, extending losses into a second session. The index was weighed down by a 1.8% loss in Saudi Basic Industries and a 0.2% fall in luxury real estate developer Retal Urban Development.
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