By Ateeq Shariff
(Reuters) – Most Gulf stock markets ended higher on Monday as tensions eased after Iran downplayed Israel’s attacks on military targets over the weekend and said the airstrike had caused only limited damage.
The attacks bypassed Tehran’s oil and nuclear infrastructure and did not disrupt energy supplies, easing geopolitical tensions in the broader region.
And while that sent oil prices tumbling, regional stock indexes gained. [O/R]
Dubai’s main stock index rose 1.3%, led by a 3.6% rise in leading developer Emaar Properties and a 2.4% rise in toll operator Salik Company.
In Abu Dhabi, the index ended 1.1% higher, with National Marine Dredging Co rising 9% after a rise in third-quarter net profit, along with a special cash dividend of 2 billion dirhams ($544.53 million).
In addition, Lulu Retail Holdings, which runs one of the Middle East’s largest hypermarket chains, said on Monday it aims to raise up to 5.27 billion dirhams ($1.43 billion) in what is expected to be the largest IPO in the world. UAE so far this year will be.
In the United Arab Emirates, stock markets trade from Monday to Friday, unlike other financial markets in the Gulf States, which trade from Sunday to Thursday.
Saudi Arabia’s benchmark index – which rose more than 1.5% on Sunday – fell 0.1%, while the country’s largest lender, the Saudi National Bank, lost 2%.
Outside the Gulf, Egypt’s top index lost 0.1%, hit by a 1.8% decline in Fawry for banking technology and electronic payments.
Egypt has proposed an initial two-day ceasefire in Gaza to exchange four Israeli hostages held by Hamas for some Palestinian prisoners, Egypt’s president said on Sunday as Israeli military strikes killed 45 Palestinians in the enclave.
SAUDI ARABIA fell 0.1% to 12,053
ABU DHABI rose 1.1% to 9,308
DUBAI gained 1.3% to 4,537
Qatar lost 0.5% to 10,504
EGYPT lost 0.1% to 30,774
BAHRAIN added 0.5% to 2,012
OMAN fell 0.3% to 4,795
KUWAIT rose 0.2% to 7,610
($1 = 3.6729 UAE dirham)
