Gulf Shares mixed on uncertainty over Hormuz deal

Gulf stock markets ended mixed on Monday as optimism over the potential for reopening of the Strait of Hormuz was complicated by Iran’s demand for U.S. concessions, ncluding compensation for strikes on its territory.

A U.S. official said Iran and Oman were close to a deal to reopen the Strait, which carried a fifth of global oil and LNG flows before Iran’s blockade following U.S.-Israeli strikes. But Tehran’s demand for further concessions kept the outlook uncertain.

In a further blow to supply security, Houthis said they struck Saudi Aramco’s Jazan refinery on Sunday, just two days after Saudi Arabia signed a defence pact with Turkiye and Pakistan amid escalating regional instability.

Saudi Arabia’s benchmark index still added 0.3%, helped by a 5.4% rise in Saudi Arabian Mining Co after reporting a steep increase in quarterly profit.

On the other hand, Maharah For Human Resources Co plunged 8.6% following a sharp decline in second-quarter profit.

Brent crude futures were up $1.40, or 1.7%, at $84.95 a barrel by 1218 GMT.

GCC stock markets were mixed on Monday as investors weighed persistent uncertainty over Middle East geopolitical developments. While Iran and Oman appear close to an agreement on shipping conditions through the Strait of Hormuz, the absence of clarity is likely to keep market sentiment cautious, said Milad Azar, market analyst at XTB MENA.

In one measure of the damage the conflict has done to shipping since it began at the end of February, the UAE’s ADNOC said on Friday that 15 of its vessels have been attacked while transiting the Strait of Hormuz in this period.

Dubai’s main share index fell 0.7%, hit by a 2.6% slide in blue-chip developer Emaar Properties. In Abu Dhabi, the index was down 0.1%.

The Qatari index concluded flat. Outside the Gulf, Egypt’s blue-chip index lost 0.5%.