Gulf markets mixed after renewed US-Iran hostilities

Stock markets in the Gulf ended mixed on Wednesday after the U.S. and Iran traded fresh strikes.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they attacked a U.S. base in Jordan and 21 other Gulf targets in retaliation for American strikes near the Strait of Hormuz, Iranian media reported.

The U.S. military said on X that it struck Iranian air defense systems, ground control stations and surveillance radar sites near the strait after President Donald Trump said Iran had downed a U.S. Apache helicopter on Tuesday.

The clashes mark one of the biggest exchanges of hostilities since the two countries agreed to a ceasefire in April, deepening doubts about prospects for a deal to end the war which began on February 28.

Saudi Arabia’s benchmark index fell 0.9%, pressured by a 2.3% fall in the country’s biggest lender by assets Saudi National Bank and a 0.4% decrease in oil major Saudi Aramco.

Meanwhile, Brent futures were up $1.74, or 1.9%, at $93.19 a barrel by 1127 GMT.

Dubai’s main share index lost 0.5%, with top lender Emirates NBD falling 1.3% and blue-chip developer Emaar Properties losing 1.4%.

In Abu Dhabi, the index was up 0.2%.

GCC stock markets have come under pressure as recent military incidents make investors cautious, though hopes that tensions will remain contained and diplomacy can advance may limit the broader impact on sentiment, said Milad Azar, market analyst at XTB MENA.

The Qatari index reversed early losses to close 0.1% higher, helped by a 0.8% rise in the Gulf’s biggest lender Qatar National Bank .

Outside the Gulf, Egypt’s blue-chip index retreated 2.1%.