Gulf stock markets dropped in early trade on Tuesday after oil prices fell to new three-month lows overnight and as Asian bourses sagged.
The Saudi Arabian stock index lost 0.7 per cent in the first half-hour as petrochemical giant Saudi Basic Industries fell by the same margin and oil shipper Bahri slid 0.8 per cent.
Dubai sank 0.3 per cent in a broad-based decline with seven of the 10 most heavily traded stocks edging down.
Strong earnings from Abu Dhabi’s Aldar Properties failed to boost that market, where the index dropped 0.7 per cent because of weak banking shares. Aldar was flat after reporting a 9.7 per cent rise in second-quarter net profit to Dh657.4 million, beating SICO Bahrain’s forecast of Dh384.1.
Qatar slid 0.4 per cent with eight of the 10 most heavily traded stocks falling.
business@thenational.ae
Follow The National's Business section on Twitter