(Reuters) – Major stock markets in the Gulf were mixed in early trade on Monday on rising expectations of a U.S. interest rate cut next month, and amid weak oil demand.
Federal Reserve members Mary Daly and Austan Goolsbee in interviews on Sunday flagged the possibility of easing in September, while minutes of the last policy meeting due this week should underline the dovish outlook.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell speaks in Jackson Hole on Friday and investors assume he will acknowledge the case for a cut.
Monetary policy in the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is usually guided by the Fed’s decisions, as most regional currencies are pegged to the U.S. dollar.
The Qatari benchmark gained 0.1%, helped by a 0.5% rise in petrochemical maker Industries Qatar and a 1.1% increase in telecoms firm Ooredoo.
In Abu Dhabi, the index added 0.3%.
Saudi Arabia’s benchmark index eased 0.1%, hit by a 0.2% fall in oil giant Saudi Aramco.
Oil prices – a catalyst for the Gulf’s financial markets – eased as concerns of weaker demand in top oil importer China weighed on market sentiment while investors focused on the progress of ceasefire talks in the Middle East, which could reduce supply risks.
Dubai’s main share index fell 0.1%, with top lender Emirates NBD losing 0.5%.
(Reporting by Ateeq Shariff in Bengaluru; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)
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