Gulf equities mixed as Ras Tanura strike unnerves investors

DUBAI: Gulf stocks ended mixed on Wednesday as an attack on a refinery in top crude exporter Saudi Arabia rattled investors and renewed concerns that conflict in the Middle East could escalate.

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis said on Tuesday they had struck the 550,000-barrel-per-day facility, the kingdom’s biggest refinery, with a ballistic missile. Saudi authorities have not immediately confirmed the strike.

Saudi Arabia’s benchmark stock index reversed early losses to finish 0.4 percent higher, helped by a 0.7 percent increase in the country’s biggest lender Saudi National Bank.

National Shipping Company of Saudi Arabia advanced 1.6 percent after reporting a steep rise in quarterly profit.

Oil major Saudi Aramco was down 0.3 percent.

Brent crude futures rose USD1.31, or 1.2 percent, to USD115.19 a barrel as of 1115 GMT, underpinned by renewed concerns about supply in the Middle East.

Dubai’s main share index fell 0.3 percent, with top lender Emirates NBD losing 1.1 percent.