Major Gulf bourses fall on Fed chair's hawkish tone

Jul 27, 2023

Traders talk with the officials at Bahrain Bourse in Manama, Bahrain, February 7, 2018. REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed/File Photo Acquire Licensing Rights

Aug 28 (Reuters) - Most stock markets in the Gulf ended lower on Monday as a slightly hawkish outlook from U.S. Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell weighed on investor sentiment.

Powell on Friday reiterated the central bank would make all efforts to tackle inflation.

Monetary policy in the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is usually guided by Fed policy because most regional currencies are pegged to the U.S. dollar.

In Abu Dhabi, the index (.FTFADGI) fell for a second consecutive session, ending 0.2% lower, weighed down by a 1.3% drop in Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB.AD) and a 0.7% decline in the UAE's largest lender, First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB.AD).

The Qatari index (.QSI) fell 0.5%, snapping its winning streak from the two previous sessions, with most sectors in the red.

Qatar National Bank (QNBK.QA), the region's largest lender, dropped 0.9% and Commercial Bank (COMB.QA) lost 1.3%.

Saudi Arabia's benchmark index (.TASI) was down 0.1%, also after rising in the previous two sessions. The index was dragged down by a 2.2% decline in Dr Sulaiman Al-Habib Medical Services (4013.SE) and a 0.7% fall in oil giant Saudi Aramco (2222.SE).

The world's largest Islamic bank by assets, Al Rajhi Bank (1120.SE), and Banque Saudi Fransi (1050.SE) slipped 0.3% and 0.9% respectively.

Dubai's benchmark index (.DFMGI) ended flat with industry and utilities seeing broad losses but financial and communication sectors recording some gains.

Dubai road-toll operator Salik (SALIK.DU) lost 1.2% and National Central Cooling (TABR.DU) dropped 2.1%.

The emirate's largest lender Emirates NBD (ENBD.DU) added 1.2%.

Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index (.EGX30) rose 0.4%, adding to gains in the previous two sessions, with Commercial International Bank (COMI.CA) and Palm Hills (PHDC.CA) rising 1.4% and 4.3% respectively.

Reporting by Md Manzer HussainEditing by Mark Potter

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