Collective Drop Hits Gulf Financial Markets Due to Political Tensions

Gulf financial markets closed Monday trading with a comprehensive collective decline, driven by anxiety over escalating regional crises and rising threats surrounding maritime navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, alongside ongoing attacks on commercial vessels. In trading details, the Saudi stock market index fell by 0.7 percent to reach 10124 points, while the indices of Dubai and Abu Dhabi each recorded a 0.3 percent drop. The Kuwait and Muscat exchanges also declined by 0.3 percent, while the Qatar stock exchange index stabilized at 8632 points. In global energy markets, Brent crude futures fell by 1.27 percent to settle at 108.5 dollars per barrel, following prior gains that pushed prices near 110 dollars. Data released by Kpler showed that Gulf crude export flows dropped to about 8.5 million barrels per day during the past week, down from more than 20 million barrels per day the previous week, amid ongoing fears of continued disruption to shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.