Saudi Shares Lead Gulf Gains With 2Q Earnings Eyed: Inside EM - Bloomberg

Saudi Shares Lead Gulf Gains With 2Q Earnings Eyed: Inside EM - Bloomberg:

Saudi Arabia led gains in the Gulf as the earnings season started in the kingdom with a positive tone. In Israel, the main index interrupted a four-day winning streak, pressured by banks.

Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index advanced as much as 0.7%. Food producer Almarai Co. JSC, the first Saudi company to deliver second-quarter numbers, gained as much as 2% after posting a 11% increase in profit.

As more company results for the period are published, “we expect the recovery to be gradual and believe that the theme that would play out is, the large companies getting larger at the behest of the smaller ones,” Al Rajhi Capital analysts wrote a note.

Benchmarks in in Dubai and Abu Dhabi rose after non-oil private sector activity in the UAE improved in June for the first time in six months and reached the strongest since October 2019, according to IHS Markit data released on Sunday. Gauges in Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain also advanced, while the index in Oman was little changed.