LONDON  - Dollar-denominated debt issued by sovereigns in the Middle East came under pressure on Friday amid a flare up in U.S.-Iran tensions.

Saudi Arabia's 2047 issue fell more than 1 cent in the dollar to 103.02 cents, the biggest daily drop since early May, according to Tradeweb data.

Oman's 2048 bond slipped 0.8 cents while Bahrain's 2044 issue lost 0.5 cents, according to data from Refinitiv.

The New York Times reported that U.S. President Donald Trump had approved military strikes against Iran on Friday in retaliation for the downing of a U.S. surveillance drone, but called off the attacks at the last minute.

Iranian officials told Reuters that Tehran had received a message Washington through Oman overnight warning that a U.S. attack was imminent.

 

(Reporting by Karin Strohecker; editing by Sujata Rao) ((karin.strohecker@thomsonreuters.com; +442075427262; Reuters Messaging: karin.strohecker.reuters.com@reuters.net))