Major stock markets in the Gulf were subdued in early trade on Thursday as concern mounted a spike in new coronavirus cases in China and the United States would slow global economic recovery.
Beijing cancelled many flights and shut schools to try to contain a fresh coronavirus outbreak, while several U.S. states, including Texas, Florida and California, reported sharp increases in cases.
Saudi Arabia's benchmark index slipped 0.2%, hurt by a 0.9% decrease in National Commercial Bank and a 0.2% ease in Al Rajhi Bank.
However, Saudi Basic Industries (SABIC) rose 0.5%, a day after the oil giant Saudi Aramco said it had completed the acquisition of a 70% stake in the petrochemical firm for $69.1 billion.
Aramco traded flat.
In Dubai, the index eased 0.5%, with blue-chip developer Emaar Properties falling 1.8% and sharia-compliant lender Dubai Islamic Bank DISB.DU losing 1%.
The Abu Dhabi index was also down 0.5%, weakened by a 1% drop in the country's largest lender First Abu Dhabi Bank.
The United Arab Emirates said citizens and residents will be allowed to travel to countries deemed low-risk for catching the coronavirus from Tuesday.
The Qatari index edged down 0.1%, as the Gulf's largest lender Qatar National Bank fell 0.8%.
(Reporting by Ateeq Shariff in Bengaluru; editing by Barbara Lewis) ((AteeqUr.Shariff@thomsonreuters.com; +918061822788;))
