Most Gulf markets ease as hostilities resume between the US and Iran

Major Gulf bourses ended lower on Thursday as investor sentiment weakened amid mounting concern over escalating hostilities between the U.S. and Iran.

The U.S. military said it struck dozens of Islamic Revolutionary Guard targets in Iran, including military command centres and drone facilities, in a two-hour operation launched after Tehran fired ballistic missiles at U.S. forces in the Middle East.

On Wednesday, the United States and Saudi Arabia carried out strikes on Iran-backed paramilitary groups in Iraq, marking the first publicly acknowledged Saudi participation in U.S.-led airstrikes.

The operation came in response to drone attacks launched from Iraqi territory against Saudi oil facilities.

The Qatari index retreated 0.9%, as all its constituents were in negative territory, including the Gulf’s biggest lender Qatar National Bank , which was down 1.4%.

QatarEnergy has notified Edison , one of its biggest European customers, that it will ​not be able to deliver three liquefied natural ‌gas (LNG) cargoes, extending “force majeure” until the end of September, the Italian utility said on Tuesday.

Investors remained focused on persistent geopolitical tensions and shipping-route disruptions. Caution may continue to weigh on local markets as uncertainty over regional security conditions persists, said Hani Abuagla Senior Market Analyst at XTB MENA.

Saudi Arabia’s benchmark index reversed early losses to finish 0.4% higher, led by a 2.9% rise in the country’s biggest lender Saudi National Bank.

Although the Saudi index posted a fourth consecutive monthly decline, it still fared better than most regional markets, albeit Oman, supported by increased alternative crude oil exports from the Red Sea port of Yanbu.

The kingdom’s real gross domestic product shrank 4.8% from a year earlier in the second quarter, preliminary government data showed on Thursday, highlighting the economic fallout of the Middle East war on the world’s top oil exporter and the broader Gulf.

Dubai’s main share index was down 0.1%, while Abu Dhabi index gained 0.4%.

Outside the Gulf, Egypt’s blue-chip index lost 0.4%.

Egypt’s cabinet said on Thursday that a drone strike caused the fire that engulfed two gas vessels at the Mediterranean port of Damietta, confirming that the blaze, which broke out a day earlier, was an attack rather than an accident.