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By Celine Aswad
DUBAI, July 6 (Reuters) - Shares in Saudi Arabia's cement and steel sectors rose on Thursday after the government cut export tariffs, but Gulf stock markets were mostly weak after a slide in oil prices.
The Saudi government said it was cancelling all export duties on steel for two years to encourage local industries, and would halve cement export tariffs.
Analysts said top-line growth of cement and steel companies was not expected to get a huge boost, but the news was positive for a building materials sector that has been hit hard by the government's austerity policies in the past couple of years.
"Despite some companies having obtained a licence to export six months ago, competition from other Asian markets is stiff and the demand outlook is relatively subdued," said a Riyadh-based cement sector analyst.
"Any rise in exports will still do little to reduce the supply glut in the local market."
Najran Cement
The Riyadh index
Elsewhere, Qatar's index
Four Arab states decided in a meeting in Cairo on Wednesday not to slap fresh sanctions on Qatar for now, but voiced disappointment at its "negative" response to their demands and warned of the possibility of further action against Doha.
The index is down 10.1 percent since June 5, when the diplomatic crisis erupted. Fund managers believe further sanctions, such as a pull-out of bank deposits, remain quite possible in coming days or weeks, but they may hurt the Qatari economy rather than cripple it.
In Abu Dhabi, Dana Gas
A High Court judge upheld an interim injunction there blocking holders of the sukuk, due to mature in October, from enforcing claims against Dana. But he also ordered Dana to cancel an injunction in a court in the emirate of Sharjah and seek a stay of its proceedings there.
The Abu Dhabi index
In Dubai the index
Cairo's stock index
HIGHLIGHTS
SAUDI ARABIA
* The index
DUBAI
* The index
ABU DHABI
* The index
QATAR
* The index
EGYPT
* The index
KUWAIT
* The index
BAHRAIN
* The index
OMAN
* The index
(Editing by Andrew Torchia) ((celine.aswad@thomsonreuters.com)(+9715 56224 7653)(Reuters Messaging: celine.aswad.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))