Most Gulf bourses retreat after Trump dismisses Iranian overture
- Saudi Arabia’s benchmark index dropped 1%
Most Gulf equity markets ended lower on Monday after US President Donald Trump dismissed an Iranian proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran said diplomacy remained the only path forward, having put its UN-announced framework to Washington through Qatari intermediaries. Trump dismissed the overture as a sign of Iranian desperation.
Saudi Arabia’s benchmark index dropped 1%, hit by a 1.7% slide in Saudi National Bank, the kingdom’s biggest lender by assets.
Oil major Saudi Aramco retreated 1.1%.
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan arrived in Washington on Monday for talks with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, state media reported.
Qatar’s index declined 0.5%, with Qatar Fuel dipped 3.1%.
Dubai’s main share index gained 0.3%, helped by a 1.4% rise in top lender Emirates NBD
In Abu Dhabi, the index lost 0.4%.
Diplomatic fractures compounded over the weekend as the Saudi-led coalition intercepted a barrage of Houthi ballistic missiles and drones targeting the kingdom.
Outside the Gulf, Egypt’s blue-chip index closed 1.1% lower.
| Saudi Arabia | dropped 1% to 10,579 |
|---|---|
| Abu Dhabi | lost 0.4% to 10,159 |
| Dubai | gained 0.3% to 5,998 |
| Qatar | declined 0.5% to 9,410 |
| Egypt | fell 1.1% to 52,469 |
| Bahrain | eased 0.1% to 1,906 |
| Oman | gained 0.6% to 7,590 |
| Kuwait | added 0.1% to 9,240 |