Kuwait, Qatar Shares Drop for Second Day; Dubai’s Index Rises

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Kuwaiti and Qatari shares declined for a second day as oil traded below $75 a barrel and on concern that China and the U.S. will accelerate plans to unwind stimulus measures. Dubai’s benchmark index gained.

Zain, Kuwait’s biggest phone company, fell to the lowest since May. Masraf Al Rayan, Qatar’s fourth-largest bank by market value, dropped for a second day after reporting a lower profit on Jan. 26. The Kuwait Stocks Exchange Index lost 1.3 percent, the most in more than three weeks, to 6,975.1. Qatar’s Doha Securities Market 20 Index declined 1.1 percent to the lowest level in six months.

In Europe, the Dow Jones Stoxx 600 Index has fallen 2.3 percent this year as the U.S. called for limits on risk-taking by banks and China moved to restrict lending and cool economic growth. U.S. stocks fell in the final hour of trading yesterday as investors speculated that the Federal Reserve may signal more plans to unwind stimulus measures. Oil traded below $75 a barrel before a report forecast to show U.S. crude inventories rose.