Most major stock markets in the Gulf rose in early trade on Monday, on course to recover some recent losses, as worries of a wider strife in the Middle East eased.
Explosions echoed over an Iranian city on Friday in what sources said was an Israeli attack, but Tehran played down the incident and indicated it had no plans for retaliation – a response that appeared gauged towards averting region-wide war.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei thanked the country’s armed forces for their attack on Israel, saying the country had demonstrated its power regardless of how many targets were hit, Iran’s official news agency reported on Sunday.
Saudi Arabia’s benchmark index gained 0.2%, helped by a 2% rise in Dr Sulaiman Al Habib Medical Services.
Among other gainers, Saudi Telecom Company (STC) added 0.4% after the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund PIF agreed to acquire a 51% stake in Telecommunication Towers Company Limited from STC Group.
Gulf markets subdued on geopolitical tensions, US rate cut concerns
The Qatari benchmark rose 0.3%, with Qatar Gas Transport gaining 0.5%.
Dubai’s main share index advanced 0.5%, with blue-chip developer Emaar Properties rising 1% and Gulf Navigation jumping 3.8%.
On the other hand, Abu Dhabi’s main index edged down 0.1%.
Meanwhile, oil prices fell by more than 1%, as the market focus switched to fundamentals after Israel and Iran played down the risk of an escalation of hostilities following Israel’s apparently small strike on Iran.
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