Middle East Market Wrap 10 September: Kuwait Leads a Split Gulf as Brent Tops 104 Dollars
Middle East equity markets were mixed on Thursday even as crude oil pushed higher, with Brent above 104 dollars a barrel, 8 of the 13 benchmarks we track rising and 5 falling. Kuwait led, its Main Market up 0.55 percent, while Egypt’s EGX 30 and Dubai’s DFM General were the weakest, each down 0.39 percent.
Brent above 104 did not lift the producers together
Crude extended its rally, with Brent at 104.01 dollars a barrel and West Texas Intermediate at 99.07 dollars in the 12:23 GMT capture, Brent up 2.77 percent and West Texas 3.14 percent from their previous 9 September settlements, per CNBC. Yet the Gulf’s markets did not move as one on it: Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share eased 0.08 percent, Qatar’s QE Index fell 0.27 percent and Dubai’s DFM General 0.39 percent, while Kuwait’s Main Market rose 0.55 percent, Abu Dhabi’s FTSE ADX General edged up 0.06 percent and Oman’s MSX 30 gained 0.29 percent. The split repeats the pattern of Wednesday, when Brent above 100 dollars also failed to lift the region’s producers as a bloc, per our Middle East wrap of 9 September.
Kuwait was the standout, Egypt reversed
Kuwait was the strongest market, its Main Market up 0.55 percent, its All Share 0.16 percent and its Premier Market 0.08 percent, with the secondary BK Main 50 the single best mover on the board at up 0.63 percent. Egypt’s EGX 30 was among the weakest, down 0.39 percent to 56,280.17, reversing the 0.58 percent gain it posted on Wednesday, on our calculation against our published closes, and Dubai’s DFM General matched it lower at down 0.39 percent, a second consecutive decline after Wednesday’s 0.32 percent fall. Jordan’s ASE Index slipped 0.01 percent while Bahrain’s All Share edged up 0.02 percent, leaving both effectively flat. The 11 index headline board ran a spread of about 0.94 percentage points, from the Main Market’s gain to the declines in Egypt and Dubai, on our calculation.
| Index | Close | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Main Market (Kuwait) | 9,332.71 | +0.55% |
| MSX 30 (Oman) | 7,647.69 | +0.29% |
| Kuwait All Share (Kuwait) | 8,942.74 | +0.16% |
| Premier Market (Kuwait) | 9,323.88 | +0.08% |
| FTSE ADX General (Abu Dhabi) | 10,112.26 | +0.06% |
| Bahrain All Share (Bahrain) | 1,929.56 | +0.02% |
Risers; the second table carries the fallers and the full note.
| Index | Close | Change |
|---|---|---|
| ASE Index (Jordan) | 4,092.95 | -0.01% |
| Tadawul All Share (Saudi Arabia) | 11,007.27 | -0.08% |
| QE Index (Qatar) | 9,824.49 | -0.27% |
| DFM General (Dubai) | 5,904.04 | -0.39% |
| EGX 30 (Egypt) | 56,280.17 | -0.39% |
Closes for Thursday 10 September 2026, ranked by change and split across 2 tables for legibility on a phone. Every level was read at the index’s own exchange with its closed session stamp; the Dubai change is the exchange’s own figure, the Qatar and Abu Dhabi changes are our calculation against our published closes, and the rest are the exchanges’ own; every change reconciles against our own published closes of 9 September. Omitted rows: BK Main 50 (Kuwait) 11,116.79, plus 0.63 percent; FADX 15 (Abu Dhabi) 10,709.03, plus 0.10 percent.
| Instrument | Level | Change |
|---|---|---|
| WTI crude, NYMEX (Oct’26) | $99.07 | +3.14% |
| Brent crude, ICE (Nov’26) | $104.01 | +2.77% |
| US Dollar Index (DXY) | 99.001 | +0.19% |
| Gold, COMEX (Dec’26) | $4,416.40 | -0.99% |
Intraday quotes captured in one call at 12:23 GMT on 10 September 2026, before the day’s settlement windows, ranked by change. Crude and gold are measured against their previous 9 September settlements; the dollar index is a spot quote.
Why it matters: Brent above 104 dollars again did not translate into a uniform bid for Gulf equities, on our reading, the second session running in which Brent above 100 dollars left the region’s producers split. Kuwait, whose market carried the day, and Oman rose, while Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Dubai eased, which underlines that the link between the oil price and the local index is looser than one day’s crude move suggests. Egypt, an importer, went the other way from Wednesday, giving back its gain, a reminder that the oil premium that helps the region’s exporters raises the cost and inflation risk for its importers.
Outlook: The near term for the region turns on whether crude holds its gains and on the path of any supply disruption, on our reading, with a sustained oil premium keeping the producers’ revenue outlook firm while adding to the cost pressures importers such as Egypt and Jordan face. The next external cue is United States consumer price data due Friday, after producer prices on Thursday, which will shape Federal Reserve expectations ahead of the 15 and 16 September meeting and, in turn, regional financial conditions, particularly in the dollar pegged Gulf economies.
Sources: Saudi Exchange, Boursa Kuwait, Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange, Dubai Financial Market, Qatar Stock Exchange, Bahrain Bourse, Muscat Stock Exchange, Amman Stock Exchange, The Egyptian Exchange, CNBC, The Edge.
