The main Gulf stock markets closed lower on Thursday amid rising geopolitical tensions in the region, although an increase in oil prices helped to limit losses. The main index of the Saudi market fell by 0.1%, with shares of the giant media group MBC dropping 9.9%, marking a decline for the third consecutive session. Since trading began on January 8, MBC's share price has risen over 130% compared to its initial offering price of 25 riyals per share. Saudi Aramco's shares also ended today’s session down 0.5%.
The main index of the Dubai stock exchange declined by 0.2%, affected by a 1.4% drop in the shares of Salik, a traffic toll company. Among other losers, the shares of Emirates NBD Bank closed down 0.8%, after having risen more than 5% in early trading. In Abu Dhabi, the index decreased by 0.3%. The Qatari index also fell by 0.3%, influenced by a 1.7% drop in shares of al-Rayan Bank. Outside the Gulf region, the Egyptian blue-chip index rose by 0.3%, benefiting from gains in the shares of Talaat Moustafa Group, which jumped by 8.4%.
