Market Wrap MENA 26 July: Oman Leads With a 0.67 Percent Gain, Kuwait Firms
The Gulf reopened after the weekend to a mixed and quiet session. Oman’s MSX 30 and Boursa Kuwait led modest gains, while Egypt’s EGX30 fell nearly 1 percent and Saudi Arabia’s TASI and Qatar’s QE Index edged lower, against a global backdrop set on Friday by a semiconductor selloff and a pullback in oil below 100 dollars a barrel, our reading.
Oman’s MSX 30 rose 0.67 percent to 7,165.03 and Boursa Kuwait firmed, its Premier Market up 0.57 percent to 9,123.98 and the All Share 0.41 percent to 8,697.27. Jordan’s ASE edged up 0.18 percent to 3,939.51. Bahrain’s All Share was effectively flat, off 0.05 percent to 1,965.76, while Qatar’s QE Index eased 0.29 percent to 10,003.67, our calculation against its 23 July close, and Saudi Arabia’s TASI fell 0.34 percent to 10,766.84 with the MSCI Tadawul 30 down 0.40 percent to 1,443.82. Egypt’s EGX30 posted the region’s largest move, down 0.95 percent to 53,417.59. In the currency market, the Egyptian pound was little changed at 51.26 per dollar and the Kuwaiti dinar held near 0.3079. The UAE’s exchanges were closed, trading a Monday-to-Friday week.
Friday had set the global backdrop the region reopened into. A sharp selloff in semiconductors dragged Wall Street’s technology names and Asia lower to end last week, while oil retreated below 100 dollars a barrel and European equities rose, our reading.
Asia had borne the brunt of the chip selloff on Friday. South Korea’s Kospi tumbled 5.72 percent and the Kosdaq 5.32 percent as technology heavyweights followed the plunge in Wall Street’s artificial-intelligence-linked names, per CNBC, Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 2.73 percent, Taiwan’s Taiex 2.67 percent and mainland China’s Shenzhen Component 2.47 percent.
In the UAE, which trades a Monday-to-Friday week and was closed on Sunday, Friday’s session had ended slightly lower, Abu Dhabi’s FADGI easing 0.13 percent and Dubai’s DFM 0.21 percent.
Europe had closed higher across the board on Friday as oil eased, Madrid’s IBEX 35 leading with a 1.65 percent gain, Frankfurt’s DAX up 1.36 percent and London’s FTSE 100 0.91 percent.
Wall Street had ended Friday mixed: the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.46 percent and the S&P 500 was little changed, up 0.05 percent, but the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.64 percent, dragged by a 4.25 percent slide in the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index as investors pulled back from the AI-linked names that had led the rally, per CNBC.
The commodity backdrop, last priced on Friday and closed over the weekend, had oil retreating on hopes of a diplomatic opening between the United States and Iran: Brent crude settled 2.93 percent lower at 97.74 dollars a barrel, while gold firmed 0.15 percent to about 4,056 dollars an ounce.
Why it matters: The regional session was calm, our reading, with no single catalyst driving the boards and the moves confined to under 1 percent in either direction. The softer oil price that came out of last week trims the near-term export-revenue tailwind for the Gulf producers but points to lower security risk around regional shipping if the reported diplomatic track holds, our reading, while Egypt’s pullback was the region’s largest single move. With global equity, commodity and currency markets closed for the weekend, the region traded largely on its own flows ahead of a heavy global week.
Outlook: The markers into the week are the Federal Reserve’s decision on Wednesday, the first reading on second-quarter US growth and the June inflation gauge on Thursday, and whether Brent holds below 100 dollars or the war premium rebuilds. Regional markets trade on through Thursday, with the UAE reopening on Monday, and will take their cue from the oil price and the global technology tone after Friday’s chip selloff.
MENA markets, 26 July close, ranked by change
| Market | Close | Change |
|---|---|---|
| MSX 30 (Oman) | 7,165.03 | +0.67% |
| Premier Market (Kuwait) | 9,123.98 | +0.57% |
| All Share (Kuwait) | 8,697.27 | +0.41% |
| ASE (Jordan) | 3,939.51 | +0.18% |
| All Share (Bahrain) | 1,965.76 | -0.05% |
| QE Index (Qatar) | 10,003.67 | -0.29% |
| TASI (Saudi Arabia) | 10,766.84 | -0.34% |
| MSCI Tadawul 30 (Saudi Arabia) | 1,443.82 | -0.40% |
| EGX30 (Egypt) | 53,417.59 | -0.95% |
Asia, Friday 24 July close, for reference, ranked by change
| Market | Close | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Straits Times (Singapore) | 5,588.34 | +0.12% |
| Nifty 50 (India) | 23,767.45 | -0.43% |
| ASX 200 (Australia) | 8,772.30 | -0.75% |
| Hang Seng (Hong Kong) | 24,963.23 | -0.98% |
| Topix (Japan) | 4,011.31 | -1.05% |
| Shanghai Composite (China) | 3,814.20 | -1.61% |
| Shenzhen Component (China) | 13,774.68 | -2.47% |
| Taiex (Taiwan) | 43,654.84 | -2.67% |
| Nikkei 225 (Japan) | 64,611.15 | -2.73% |
| Kosdaq (South Korea) | 748.22 | -5.32% |
| Kospi (South Korea) | 6,690.62 | -5.72% |
UAE, Friday 24 July close, for reference, ranked by change
| Market | Close | Change |
|---|---|---|
| FADGI (Abu Dhabi) | 9,828.14 | -0.13% |
| DFM General (Dubai) | 5,786.97 | -0.21% |
Europe, Friday 24 July close, for reference, ranked by change
| Index | Close | Change |
|---|---|---|
| IBEX 35 (Spain) | 19,585.40 | +1.65% |
| DAX (Germany) | 25,099.00 | +1.36% |
| Euro Stoxx 50 (Eurozone) | 6,280.94 | +1.14% |
| FTSE MIB (Italy) | 51,802.23 | +0.95% |
| FTSE 100 (UK) | 10,736.23 | +0.91% |
| CAC 40 (France) | 8,372.28 | +0.88% |
| Stoxx Europe 600 (Europe) | 644.51 | +0.82% |
United States, Friday 24 July close, for reference, ranked by change
| Index | Close | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Dow Jones | 51,947.25 | +0.46% |
| S&P 500 | 7,411.98 | +0.05% |
| Russell 2000 | 2,930.01 | -0.35% |
| Nasdaq | 24,975.82 | -0.64% |
| Philadelphia Semiconductor (SOX) | 11,818.89 | -4.25% |
Commodities, rates, FX and crypto, ranked by change
| Instrument | Level | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Silver | $58.49/oz | +0.74% |
| Gold | $4,056.20/oz | +0.15% |
| USD/KWD | 0.3079 | +0.05% |
| GBP/USD | 1.3320 | +0.05% |
| US Dollar Index | 101.484 | +0.04% |
| USD/JPY | 163.85 | 0.00% |
| US 10-year Treasury yield | 4.683% | -2.0 bp |
| EUR/USD | 1.1368 | -0.07% |
| USD/EGP | 51.26 | -0.08% |
| Copper | $6.334/lb | -0.15% |
| Bitcoin | $64,161 | -0.97% |
| Natural gas | $2.875/mmBtu | -1.41% |
| WTI crude | $90.02 | -2.35% |
| Brent crude | $97.74 | -2.93% |
Price basis: the MENA table is Sunday 26 July closes pulled at the exchange originators after the close, with the Qatar change our calculation against its 23 July close; USD/EGP and USD/KWD are Sunday 26 July levels; the UAE, Asia, Europe, United States and the commodity, rate and other FX figures are Friday 24 July closes, the latest available with those markets closed for the weekend; the UAE trades a Monday-to-Friday week and did not trade on Sunday.
Sources: Saudi Exchange; Boursa Kuwait; Qatar Stock Exchange; Amman Stock Exchange; CNBC; and Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange for the UAE reference.
