LONDON, June 28 (Reuters) - The cost of insuring exposure to Saudi Arabian debt rose on Wednesday to the highest level since January as the diplomatic crisis in the Gulf rumbled on.

Qatari debt insurance costs also rose while its 2026 sovereign dollar bond slipped to a five-and-a-half month low.

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt imposed a boycott on Qatar three weeks ago, accusing it of backing militants, then issued an ultimatum, including demands it shut down a Turkish military base in Doha, shutting the Al Jazeera TV channel and curbing ties with Iran.

Data from IHS Markit showed that five-year credit default swaps (CDS) for Saudi Arabia rose three basis points (bps) from Tuesday's close to 114 bps, the highest level since mid-January.

Qatar's 2026 sovereign dollar eurobond fell 0.2 cents in the dollar to 97.257 cents, the lowest level since early January, according to Tradeweb data.

Qatar five-year CDS were trading at 118 bps, up 3 bps from Tuesday's close according to IHS Markit, and just below the 119 bps hit on Monday, which was the highest since February 2016.





(Reporting by Claire Milhench; editing by Sujata Rao) ((claire.milhench@thomsonreuters.com; +44)(0)(207 542 3571; Reuters Messaging: claire.milhench.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))