Most Gulf markets rise, Dubai's main index hits over 17-year high

June 4 (Reuters) - Most Gulf share indexes ended higher on Wednesday, tracking steady oil prices as a hit to Canadian supply from wildfires offset a hit from ongoing OPEC+ output increases.
Dubai's main share index hit its highest levels since 2008 and settled 0.25% higher, with real estate financier Amlak Finance (AMLK.DU), opens new tab the top gainer on the index with a 14.6% rise.
The index has been recording gains each year since 2021. It rose 27% last year and is up 7% so far this year.
Abu Dhabi's benchmark index (.FTFADGI), opens new tab followed the trend, closing 0.45% higher. The index recorded a second consecutive session of gains.
Oil prices - a catalyst for stock markets in the Gulf - held steady, with Brent crude futures rising 0.1% to $65.59 a barrel by 1203 GMT.
The OPEC+ group recently decided to increase output by 411,000 barrels per day, a similar increase from the prior two months. Meanwhile, Canada's wildfires have reduced production by 344,000 bpd, according to Reuters calculations.
A possible call between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping also dominated market sentiment, with investors continuing to focus on the pace of trade negotiations.
Saudi Arabia's benchmark stock index (.TASI), opens new tab settled 1.59% higher, with Arabian Pipes Company (2200.SE), opens new tab jumping 35.15%. The welded steel pipes manufacturer approved an increase of its share capital to 200 million SAR ($53.32 million) at an extraordinary meeting last day.
JP Morgan also said on Tuesday that the kingdom is expected to issue $12.6 billion in bonds until year-end. Companies in Saudi Arabia have been tapping debt markets, with state oil giant Aramco (2222.SE), opens new tab raising $5 billion in bonds last week. Aramco settled flat on Wednesday.
Qatar's benchmark stock index (.QSI), opens new tab finished 0.56% lower, with Commercial Bank (COMB.QA), opens new tab falling 2.45%.
Data from Qatar's finance ministry showed that the country recorded a budget deficit of 0.5 billion Qatari riyals ($137.32 million) in the first quarter of 2025 and total revenue of 49.9 billion Qatari riyals, down 7.5% from the same period last year.
Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index (.EGX30), opens new tab was up 1%, with automotive company GB Corp (GBCO.CA), opens new tab rising 7.29%. The index recorded a second consecutive session of gains.
Wednesday also marks the deadline for countries to submit their best proposals for trade deals with the United States to avoid Trump's hefty tariffs.
All Gulf stock markets will be closed on Thursday as the countries will be observing the Day of Arafat.
($1 = 3.7506 Saudi Riyals)
($1 = 3.6412 Qatar riyals)

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Telegraph

3 hours ago

• Telegraph

Spain exempt from Nato's 5pc spending target

Spain will be exempt from spending 5 per cent of its GDP on defence after striking a deal with Nato, the country's prime minister said. Speaking ahead of this week's Nato summit in The Hague, Pedro Sanchez said he had achieved a 'success' for his country by securing an exception from the new spending target, which had been billed as a strict requirement for all 32 Nato members. It puts Madrid at odds with Donald Trump, the US president, who has called for a significant increase in defence spending and cast doubt on his willingness to defend Nato allies 'if they don't pay'. Mr Sanchez said Spain could fulfil its existing commitments to Nato with a defence budget of 2.1 per cent of GDP. 'We fully respect the legitimate desire of other countries to increase their defence investment, but we are not going to do so,' the Spanish prime minister said in a televised address on Sunday. Mark Rutte, the Nato secretary general, warned members earlier this month that they must commit to spending 5 per cent on defence spending or 'better learn to speak Russian'. It came after he had warned that Vladimir Putin could attack Nato by 2030. According to Nato estimates, Spain spent only 1.24 per cent of GDP on defence last year. In April, Mr Sanchez pledged to increase defence spending to 2 per cent by the end of this year. Target in doubt But Spain's Left-wing government is divided on the need to increase military spending and a think-tank linked to the administration has cast doubt on whether the 2 per cent target for this year is feasible. Mr Sanchez wrote to Mr Rutte last week to say that 5 per cent of GDP was 'unreasonable and counter-productive', arguing that such a commitment would impact the country's social spending and undermine EU plans for technological growth. On Sunday, it emerged that the agreement Nato leaders will sign at The Hague on Wednesday has been altered to accommodate Spain's objections. The text on the spending pledge has been changed from 'we commit' to 'allies commit', allowing Mr Sanchez to claim the commitment would not apply to Spain. Under the plan, countries are meant to reach 5 per cent of GDP by boosting their core defence spending goal from 2 per cent to 3.5 per cent, and adding a further 1.5 per cent on related items such as cyber security and adapting roads and bridges for military vehicles. Mr Sanchez said that Spain needs only to spend 2.1 per cent of GDP to meet its Nato capability targets – the personnel, equipment and infrastructure requirements set by the alliance The announcement comes at a time of political difficulty for Mr Sanchez, who is under enormous pressure over a corruption scandal within his Socialist party.

Sky News

4 hours ago

• Sky News

UK and NATO allies agree to boost spending on defence and related areas to 5% of GDP by 2035

The UK and its NATO allies have agreed to increase spending on defence and related areas to 5% of GDP by 2035, two diplomatic sources with knowledge of the deal have told Sky News. Ambassadors of all 32 alliance member states signed off on the new spending pledge ahead of a major summit of leaders, including Donald Trump, this week, they said. The boost - up from a current goal of 2% of GDP - is as much about keeping the US president onside as it is about responding to what is regarded by the allies as a growing threat from Vladimir Putin and the challenge posed by China. The target will be formally rubber stamped when the heads of state and government meet in The Hague on Tuesday and Wednesday. The ambitious spending goal - secured following a huge amount of persuasion by Mark Rutte, the NATO secretary general - is broken down into 3.5% of GDP spent on pure defence and 1.5% of GDP spence on related areas, which can include infrastructure and cyber security. Spain had been the last to agree. The UK had also been slow to sign up but is understood to have been pushing for the 2035 timeframe, which would mean it is pushed beyond the next parliament. Sir Keir Starmer has said he has an ambition to increase UK defence spending to 3% of GDP from 2.3% by 2034. The new 5% spending goal is the kind of level of defence spending invested by NATO allies during the Cold War.

The Independent

5 hours ago

• The Independent

Iran votes to close Strait of Hormuz - how could it affect global oil and gas?

Iran is set to close a major oil shipping route in retaliation for 'devastating' US strikes on three of its nuclear sites. Tehran 's lawmakers voted to cut off the Strait of Hormuz, a trade route that sees one-fifth of the world's oil and gas pass through it. It comes after seven US stealth bombers dropped 14 30,000-pound bunker-busting bombs on Iran's nuclear facilities early on Sunday morning in an operation called 'Midnight Hammer'. However, Iran's parliament's decision is not binding, and a final decision would have to be made by top Iranian security officials, according to state media. So what is the Strait of Hormuz, and how could closing it affect global oil and gas? The Independent takes a look below. What is the Strait of Hormuz? The strait lies between Oman and Iran and links the Gulf north of it with the Gulf of Oman to the south and the Arabian Sea beyond. It is 21 miles (33 km) wide at its narrowest point, with the shipping lane just 2 miles (3 km) wide in either direction. The strait, which lies in Iran's territorial waters, sees around one-fifth of global oil supplies and a third of liquefied natural gas pass through it. Why is it important? Between the start of 2022 and last month, somewhere between 17.8 million and 20.8 million barrels of crude, condensate and fuels flowed through the strait every day. The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) members Saudi Arabia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Iraq export most of their crude via the strait, mainly to Asia. The UAE and Saudi Arabia, which are opposed to Iran's influence in the region, have sought to find other routes to bypass the strait. Qatar, among the world's biggest liquefied natural gas exporters, sends almost all of its gas through the strait. How could it affect global oil and gas trade? Iran could deny access to the giant tankers that ferry oil and gas to China, Europe and other major energy-consuming regions, according to Bloomberg. If this happened, oil prices would surge and potentially destabilise the global economy, according to the publication.