Mideast Stocks: Most Gulf markets fall following Fed rate hike; Qatar gains

Mideast Stocks: Most Gulf markets fall following Fed rate hike; Qatar gains

Most stock markets in the Gulf ended lower on Thursday, as regional central banks increased key interest rates following the U.S. Federal Reserve's move to raise rates by a quarter of a percentage point.

Oil and gas exporters in the Gulf tend to follow the Fed's rate move as most regional currencies are pegged to the U.S. dollar; only the Kuwaiti dinar is pegged to a basket of currencies, which includes the dollar.

Saudi Arabia's benchmark index fell 0.5%, weighed by a 2.3% fall in Dr Sulaiman Al-Habib Medical Services and a 0.9% decrease in Al Rajhi Bank.

Dubai's main share index dropped 0.3%, with Emirates Central Cooling Systems losing 2.1%. However, the losses were limited by a 1.8% rise in top lender Emirates NBD after it reported a 78% surge in second-quarter profit. The Dubai bourse recorded some volatility after the Fed's rate hike.

The main index could see some price corrections if traders move to secure their gains due to the uncertainty regarding monetary policy, said Daniel Takieddine, CEO MENA at BDSwiss. "However, the market could remain on a strong footing thanks to strong fundamentals."

In Abu Dhabi, the index eased 0.1%. The Saudi central bank, known as SAMA, increased its repo rate