Most stock markets in the Gulf ended lower on Thursday amid persistently weak oil prices and a string of lackluster corporate earnings reports.

Saudi Arabia's benchmark index dropped 0.7%, hit by a 0.6% fall in Al Rajhi Bank and a 1.4% decrease in Saudi National Bank. Elsewhere, oil behemoth Saudi Aramco lost 0.4%.

Oil prices - a catalyst for the Gulf's financial markets - edged up on Thursday, taking a break after major losses in the previous session, as investors weighed concerns about global oversupply with looming sanctions against Russia's Lukoil.

The world oil market will see a small surplus in 2026 after OPEC+ production increases and higher supply from other producers, an OPEC report showed on Wednesday, a further shift from its earlier projections of a deficit.

Dubai's main share index retreated 0.8%, weighed down by a 4.7% slide in Emirates NBD, while Salik Company was down 1.9%. The toll operator reported a year-over-year increase in third-quarter net profit, but experienced a sequential decline from the previous quarter.

In Abu Dhabi, the index lost 0.4%, with Presight AI Holding plunging 9.8%, despite reporting a rise in quarterly profit.

The Qatari index tumbled 1.1%, with Qatar Islamic Bank declining 2.4%.

Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index eased 0.1%, with Commercial International Bank falling 1.7%.

  • Saudi Arabia fell 0.7% to 11,178
  • Abu Dhabi lost 0.3% to 9,961
  • Dubai dropped 0.8% to 5,991
  • Qatar declined 1.1% to 11,082
  • Egypt eased 0.1% to 40,191
  • Bahrain was down 0.4% to 2,066
  • Oman added 0.1% to 5,723
  • Kuwait finished flat at 9,443

(Reporting by Ateeq Shariff in Bengaluru; Editing by Toby Chopra)