Dec 6 (Reuters) – Gulf stock markets fell on Wednesday as oil prices fell, while Saudi stocks edged higher after a second straight decline.
Saudi Arabia’s benchmark stock index (.TASI) fell earlier on the back of a more than 1% rise in Elm Company (7203.SE) and a 1.2% rise in telecom company Etihad Aseeb Telecommunications (7040.SE). It rose 0.1% after that.
Insurer Saudi Enaya (8311.SE)’s share price also fell at the top of the index after shareholders announced they had rejected a takeover proposal submitted by another rival, United Cooperative Assurance (8190.SE). As a result, the stock price rose 6.7%.
Separately, Saudi Arabia announced on Tuesday that it would offer tax incentives, including a 30-year exemption from corporate tax, to foreign companies with regional headquarters in the kingdom.
Dubai’s main stock index (.DFMGI) fell 0.1% for the fifth day in a row, led by declines in real estate and financial stocks, while blue-chip developer Emar Properties (EMAR.DU) fell 1.2%. and Dubai Islamic Bank (DISB) fell. .DU) eased by 0.4%.
In the Abu Dhabi market, the benchmark index (.FTFADGI) fell by 0.6%, followed by a 0.7% decline in First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB.AD), the UAE’s largest financial institution, and a decline of 0.7% in Emirates Telecommunications. Group (EAND.AD) fell 1.6%.
Qatar’s benchmark index (.QSI) also fell by 0.6%, marking the fourth consecutive day of negative growth, with most individual stocks in negative territory, led by financial stocks. Qatar National Bank (QNBK.QA) and Qatar Islamic Bank (QISB.QA), the Gulf’s largest financial institutions, fell 1% and 0.8%, respectively.
Reporting by Shamsuddin Mohd in Bangalore
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