The Qatar stock market fell in early trading on Wednesday, pressured by its financial shares, while property stocks lifted Saudi Arabia's index.

Qatar's index lost 0.8 percent, primarily due to a 1 percent drop in blue-chip Qatar National Bank and a 1.4 percent fall in lender Masraf Al Raya.

Gulf Arab economies will grow at a slower pace than previously forecast, a quarterly Reuters poll of economists found, as oil output cuts, lower crude prices and weaker global growth put pressure on regional economies.

Saudi Arabia's index rose 0.3 percent, with developer Jabal Omar gaining 3.1 percent and market heavyweight Saudi Basic Industries adding 0.5 percent.

Petrochemical investor Alujain continued to gain, adding 3.3 percent after an update on the fire at its affiliate's plant. The company said it now expects the NATPET plant to start operating all units by the end of September.

Dur Hospitality was up 1.4 percent after signing a contract to operate two hotel buildings in Makkah for 17.7 million riyals ($4.72 million).

The Dubai index edged down 0.1 percent, with Air Arabia declining 1.8 percent and DU losing 1.4 percent.

Last week, Air Arabia said it has begun legal proceedings against Abraaj founder Arif Naqvi in a court in Sharjah. The airline said it had an overall exposure of $336 million to Dubai-based Abraaj.

But Amlak Finance rose 0.5 percent after announcing a renegotiation of restructuring terms with its financiers to allow more flexibility in adapting to "current market conditions".

Abu Dhabi's index inched up 0.1 percent, with First Abu Dhabi Bank the largest lender in the United Arab Emirates gaining 0.4 percent.

($1 = 3.7503 riyals) (Reporting by Ateeq Shariff and Abinaya Vijayaraghavan in Bengaluru Editing by Alexandra Hudson)

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