By Ateeq Shariff
Aug 10 (Reuters) - Most major stock markets in the Gulf
closed higher on Monday, with the Saudi index supported by
petrochemical shares as oil demand recovers.
The Chief Executive of oil giant Saudi Aramco,
Amin Nasser, said on Sunday that he sees oil demand recovering
in Asia as economies gradually open up after the easing of
coronavirus lockdowns.
Brent crude was 31 cents, or 0.7%, higher at $44.71
a barrel by 1318 GMT.
The kingdom’s main stock index edged up 0.1%, led by a 4.3%
jump in Saudi Arabia Fertilizers and a 2.1% increase
in Sahara International Petrochemical Company.
Aramco ticked up 0.2%. The state-owned company on Sunday
reported a 73% plunge in profit for the second quarter, but
stuck with plans to pay $75 billion in dividends this year.
Dubai's main share index traded flat, with
blue-chip developer Emaar Properties rising 0.4% and
Dubai Islamic Bank, the United Arab Emirates' largest
sharia-compliant lender, adding 0.3%.
In Abu Dhabi, the index gained 0.5%, led by a 3.4%
rise in aquaculture firm International Holding and a
0.4% gain in the country's largest lender, First Abu Dhabi Bank
.
The United Arab Emirates' central bank said on Saturday it
was temporarily relaxing two key requirements to encourage banks
to lend more to businesses under the COVID-19 economic stimulus
plan.
The Qatari index closed up 0.2%, supported by a 1.4%
gain in petrochemical firm Industries Qatar.
Egypt's blue-chip index eased 0.2%, ending five
sessions of gains, hurt by a 1.8% fall in top lender Commercial
International Bank.
SAUDI ARABIA up 0.1% to 7,536 points
ABU DHABI rose 0.5% to 4,354 points
DUBAI was flat at 2,094 points
QATAR added 0.2% to 9,418 points
EGYPT down 0.2% to 10,938 points
BAHRAIN gained 0.5% to 1,300 points
OMAN slipped 0.3% to 3,577 points
KUWAIT was up 0.6% at 5,545 points
(Reporting by Ateeq Shariff in Bengaluru; Editing by Kirsten
Donovan)