DUBAI: Most major Gulf markets gained on Sunday, reacting to positive global market sentiment after the US and China agreed to a trade war truce at the G20 meeting.
The two powers agreed on Saturday to restart trade talks after US President Donald Trump offered concessions including no new tariffs and an easing of restrictions on the Chinese tech company Huawei.
Ƶ’s index inched up 0.3 percent, lifted by communication services stocks such as telecoms operator Zain Ƶ, which rose 4.2 percent, and Etihad Etisalat Company, which rose 1.9 percent.
Tadawul All Share Index rose for the fourth consecutive session or 25 points to close at 8,822 points, argaam reported.
Dubai’s index rose 1.2 percent, lifted by the largest lender in the emirate, Emirates NBD, rising 4.1 percent after getting banking regulatory approval to acquire shares in Turkey’s Denizbank from Russia’s Sberbank.
The real estate and construction sector was also up, with market heavyweight Emaar Properties gaining 1.1 percent, construction firm Arabtec up 1.3 percent, Emaar Development 0.8 percent, and Damac Properties 0.7 percent.
HIGHLIGHTS
• The Abu Dhabi index shed 0.2 percent, dragged down by financials.
• Dubai’s index rose 1.2 percent.
• Kuwait’s index was up 0.3 percent.
The Abu Dhabi index shed 0.2 percent, dragged down by financials.
The exchange announced on Sunday it was reducing its trading commission fees by between 50 percent and 90 percent as it seeks to reduce investor costs, increase liquidity and build confidence.
Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank was down 0.9 percent and First Abu Dhabi Bank, the largest bank in the UAE, slipped 0.7 percent.
Qatar’s index rose 0.1 percent, with Commercial Bank up 1.7 percent and Qatar National Bank up 1.0 percent.
Kuwait’s index was up 0.3 percent, continuing its gains days after MSCI said it would upgrade Kuwaiti equities to its main emerging markets index in 2020.
The Egyptian stock exchange was closed for a holiday.
Trump said on Saturday he would hold off for the “time being” on plans to impose tariffs on $300 billion more in Chinese imports — on top of the $250 billion he has already targeted. This decision will jump-start trade talks that stalled last month.
“We’re going to work with China where we left off,” Trump said. He also said China had agreed to buy more American farm products.
Andy Rothman, an investment strategist with Matthews Asia and a former economic official with the US Embassy in Beijing, said the Trump-Xi meeting was more conciliatory than he expected. He was struck by Trump's use of the term “strategic partner” to describe US relations with China after other administration officials have played up the geopolitical rivalry between the two countries.
Neil Shearing, the London-based chief economist at Capital Economics, predicted that financial markets will rally with relief when they reopen on Monday. “But I don’t think this marks the turning of the tide,” he said. “Talks will ebb and flow, but the direction over the next 12 months will be toward renewed escalation because issues around industrial strategy will prove to be so intractable.”
