A hush settled over Gulf trading floors on Thursday morning. Screens flickered red from Riyadh to Doha as investors chose caution over conviction, waiting for signals from high-stakes nuclear discussions between the United States and Iran unfolding in Geneva.
In Saudi Arabia, the main index slid 0.5%, extending recent weakness. The pullback comes as the kingdom grapples with a widening budget deficit, driven by heavier government spending. Financial heavyweights led the retreat. Shares of Al Rajhi Bank, the world’s largest Islamic lender, dipped 0.6%, while Saudi National Bank dropped 1.4%.
Energy giant Saudi Aramco also extended losses, shedding 0.7%. The stock remains under pressure after confirmation of damage at its Juaymah terminal triggered delivery cancellations. Meanwhile, the kingdom is reportedly lifting oil output and exports as a precautionary step amid fears of potential disruption if regional tensions escalate.
Dubai mirrored the cautious mood. The emirate’s benchmark index fell 0.5%, dragged lower by banking shares. Emirates NBD tumbled more than 3%, while developer Emaar Properties gave up nearly 1%.
In the capital, Abu Dhabi’s index slipped 0.3% after two sessions of little movement. Conglomerate Alpha Dhabi Holding and property group Aldar Properties both edged lower. The decline comes even as the UAE’s central bank unveiled plans to build a sovereign financial cloud infrastructure in partnership with Core42, a subsidiary of tech group G42—an initiative aimed at bolstering the nation’s digital financial backbone.
Qatar’s exchange was no exception to the regional softness. The benchmark eased 0.3%, with losses spread across sectors. Qatar National Bank, the region’s largest lender, slipped 0.3%, while Qatar Aluminum Manufacturing Co fell sharply, down 3.1%.
For now, Gulf investors appear content to wait. With geopolitics steering sentiment and oil markets finely balanced, traders are watching Geneva as closely as they are their trading terminals.
