Mideast Stocks: Gulf markets rally on vaccine optimism, oil price rise

Mideast Stocks: Gulf markets rally on vaccine optimism, oil price rise

Major Gulf markets extended gains to end higher for a second straight session on Tuesday, as the progress in the development of a coronavirus vaccine boosted hopes of a global economic recovery.Pfizer Inc on Monday said its COVID-19 vaccine, developed with German partner BioNTech SE, was more than 90% effective in preventing infection. The Gulf region also benefited from a rise in oil prices on the back of vaccine hopes, outweighing the expected negative impact on fuel demand from new lockdowns.Saudi Arabia's benchmark index closed 0.5% higher, led by a 0.5% rise in Al Rajhi Bank, while National Commercial Bank advanced 2.4%.The kingdom's economy shrank 4.2% in the third quarter from a year earlier, government data showed on Tuesday, a smaller contraction than in the second quarter when it was reeling