Mideast Stocks: Saudi index gains on rising oil prices; most Gulf bourses muted

Mideast Stocks: Saudi index gains on rising oil prices; most Gulf bourses muted

Saudi Arabia's stock market ended higher on Monday amid rising oil prices, although most Gulf bourses were subdued on concerns about global financial conditions.

Oil prices edged up in choppy trading as China's continuation of loose monetary policy was partly offset by fears that high inflation and energy costs could drag the global economy into recession.

Oil supply is likely to remain tight after OPEC and allies including Russia pledged on Oct. 5 to cut output by 2 million barrels per day while a war of words between OPEC's de facto leader Saudi Arabia and the United States could foreshadow more volatility.

The benchmark index in Saudi Arabia advanced 1.4%, buoyed by a 2.9% rise in Retal Urban Development Co and a 2.1% increase in Al Rajhi Bank.

On Sunday, OPEC+ member states lined up to endorse the steep cut to its output target agreed this month after the White House accused Saudi Arabia of coercing other nations into supporting the move.

The United States last week said the cut would boost Russia's foreign earnings and suggested it had been engineered for political reasons by Saudi Arabia, which on Sunday denied it was supporting Moscow in its invasion of Ukraine.

In Qatar, the index ended flat.