Mideast Stocks: Most Gulf markets gain as Trump retreats on Fed pressure
Most stock markets in the Gulf ended higher on Wednesday, after U.S. President Donald Trump said he had no plans to fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and hinted at lower tariffs for China.
On Tuesday, Trump backed off from threats to fire Powell after days of intensifying criticisms of the central bank chief for not cutting interest rates. The president also reiterated that he wanted a deal with China, following which tariffs would not be anywhere near 145%, and said he would set the terms of the deal if Beijing did not enter talks.
Saudi Arabia's benchmark index finished 0.8% higher, led by a 3.6% rise in ACWA Power Company and a 2.5% increase in Saudi Telecom Company. Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund on Tuesday lowered its 2025 GDP growth forecast for Saudi Arabia, while flagging headwinds for the broader region, including a more gradual resumption of oil production.
Dubai's main share index advanced 1.4%, buoyed by a 3.6% jump in blue-chip developer Emaar Properties. Elsewhere, Emirates NBD Bank climbed 2.5%, extending gains for a third session. In the previous session, ENBD - Dubai's top lender - reported net profit of 6.2 billion dirhams for the first quarter, beating analysts' expectations of about 5.1 billion dirhams. Elsewhere, Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company (du) closed 0.6% higher. The company on Tuesday announced a 2 billion-dirham ($544.5 million) hyper-scale data centre deal with Microsoft MSFT.O. The Abu Dhabi index concluded 0.7% higher.
The Qatari index climbed 1%, with the Gulf's biggest lender Qatar National Bank rising 0.9%.
Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index jumped 2.6%, as most of its constituents were in positive territory including Commercial International Bank, which was up 2.9%.
SAUDI ARABIA rose 0.8% to 11,681
Abu Dhabi up 0.7% to 9,324
Dubai leapt 1.4% to 5,205
QATAR advanced 1% to 10,237
EGYPT rose 2.6% to 31,640
BAHRAIN eased 0.3% to 1,892
OMAN was flat at 4,290
KUWAIT added 0.5% to 8,437
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