Most Gulf markets gain as earnings season advances | Reuters

Most Gulf markets gain as earnings season advances | Reuters

Most stock markets in the Gulf ended higher on Tuesday, with investors focused on corporate earnings.

Saudi Arabia's benchmark index (.TASI), opens new tab advanced 1%, led by a 2% rise in Al Rajhi Bank (1120.SE), opens new tab. The bank reported annual net profit of 24.79 billion riyals ($6.61 billion), up from 19.72 billion riyals a year earlier.

Al Rajhi also announced a cash dividend of 1.75 riyals per share for the second half, marking a nearly 20% rise compared to the same period last year.

Among other gainers, Saudi National Bank (1180.SE), opens new tab - the country's biggest lender by assets - jumped 3.4% following a sharp rise in 2025 net profit.

The market is also gaining support from expectations of increased foreign investor access to the Saudi market starting February 1, said Milad Azar, market analyst at XTB MENA.

Oil prices continue to provide stability after recovering last week, though geopolitical developments pose an underlying risk that could affect the market should regional tensions intensify, added Azar.

In Abu Dhabi, the index (.FTFADGI), opens new tab rose 0.9%.

Meanwhile, crude prices were little changed as resumption in supply from Kazakhstan offset the price increase caused by a storm impacting crude production and refineries on the U.S. Gulf Coast.

The head of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) said global oil demand will remain above 100 million barrels per day through 2040, while demand for both liquefied natural gas and electricity will grow by 50% or more.

Dubai's main share index (.DFMGI), opens new tab added 0.3%, with blue-chip developer Emaar Properties (EMAR.DU), opens new tab rising 1.4%.

The Qatari index (.QSI), opens new tab, however, eased 0.3%, with Qatar Islamic Bank (QISB.QA), opens new tab losing 1.3%.

Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index (.EGX30), opens new tab rose 0.7%, closing at its highest, with Commercial International Bank (COMI.CA), opens new tab rising 1.4%.

Mubadala Joins #Dubai Property Portal’s $170 Million Fundraise - Bloomberg

Mubadala Joins Dubai Property Portal’s $170 Million Fundraise - Bloomberg

Dubai-based Property Finder has raised $170 million from investors in the United Arab Emirates, bringing total funding for the classifieds website over recent months to nearly $1 billion.

Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment Co. will invest $75 million, while BECO Capital will allocate $20 million, Property Finder said in a statement. Another unidentified wealth fund will provide the remaining funding, the firm said, without disclosing the name.

“As a UAE company, we find it very important to welcome local investors,” Michael Lahyani, founder and chief executive officer of Property Finder, said in an interview. “And we wanted to make room for them even though we didn’t really need to raise more capital.”

The latest funding comes after a $525 million investment in September from private equity firms Permira and Blackstone. Weeks later, it secured $250 million of debt from Ares Management.

Real estate businesses in the Gulf, particularly in Dubai, have drawn increasing foreign capital as the emirate has emerged as a hub for tourism and corporate activity. That’s a sharp contrast from before, when global asset managers largely treated the region as a source of capital rather than a destination for investment.

Lahyani said the company, which operates in five markets across the Gulf, still expects the biggest upside to be in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, where it has grown 30% in the past five years.

Dubai’s property market was among the world’s best performers last year, extending the longest real estate rally in its history despite warnings about oversupply and bubble risks.

Founded about two decades ago, Property Finder competes with classified platforms Dubizzle Ltd., which postponed its initial public offering last year, and Bayut, which is backed by Jared Kushner’s Affinity Partners.

Property Finder is not currently considering an IPO, Lahyani said.

“You need a minimum size before you can IPO a business,” he said. “It’s potentially dangerous to IPO a business sub-scale.”

#SaudiArabia-#UAE Tensions Put Middle East Businesses on Edge - Bloomberg

Saudi Arabia-UAE Tensions Put Middle East Businesses on Edge - Bloomberg

Middle East businesses are watching tensions between Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates with increasing nervousness, concerned it could impact commerce at a time when both nations are emerging as powerhouses of regional trade and finance.

Those tensions erupted into the open in December when the kingdom gave UAE forces 24 hours to withdraw from Yemen, and Saudi media has since ramped up rhetoric against its eastern neighbor.

While no formal diplomatic or commercial measures have been taken, some companies operating in both countries have begun contingency planning to ensure business continuity should the situation escalate further, according to people familiar with the matter, who requested anonymity in order to discuss private deliberations.

For international firms and investors, the situation is evoking memories of the more than three-year blockade of Qatar — imposed by Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt — that began in 2017 and disrupted regional supply chains. Adding to their anxiety about regional stability, President Donald Trump said last week that an “armada” of US Navy vessels was heading to the Middle East as he continues to threaten Iran with strikes.

“At this stage, companies are not reacting operationally; they are asking baseline questions,” said Hussein Nasser-Eddin, chief executive officer of Dubai-based security services provider Crownox. “Most inquiries focus on financial resilience in case of escalation and whether there are any early diplomatic or consular shifts.”

Some UAE-based firms have reported problems securing Saudi business visas, the people said. It’s not clear how widespread the issue is or whether it marks a change of policy by the Saudi government, which has been pushing for companies to have their regional headquarters in the kingdom for several years.

At least one UAE-based supplier to Saudi Arabia is weighing whether to start building inventory as a cushion, while some funds and companies are evaluating plans to open offices in the kingdom to insulate themselves should there be curbs on cross-border activity, the people said.

At stake is about $22 billion in trade between the two largest Gulf economies, as well as business confidence as both seek to cement their positions as global finance hubs. Their sovereign wealth funds have become bankers to the world, with significant investments across finance, energy, technology and health care. That’s also led to a growing rivalry, with both vying to become the region’s preeminent business hub for Wall Street giants, hedge funds and asset managers.

Representatives for the Emirati and Saudi governments did not respond to requests for comment.

The latest tensions underscore the increasingly delicate balancing act facing global financial firms, as they seek access to an estimated $3 trillion controlled by sovereign wealth funds in Abu Dhabi and Riyadh, while maintaining operations across both markets.

Many professionals who operate in the kingdom continue to be based in Dubai and travel back and forth. Saudi Arabia has sought to change that with an ultimatum requiring foreign firms to base their Middle East operations in the kingdom or risk losing business with its vast network of government entities.

Several people said that while the tensions are a persistent topic of conversation, they are not seeing any real impact on businesses or planned investments. Others expressed optimism that political leaders will work behind the scenes to resolve the situation.

There are some signs of a willingness to deescalate. Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal Bin Farhan Al Saud on Monday said the UAE’s decision to leave Yemen — “if that indeed is the case” — would be a building block for better relations. Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan said in an interview with CNBC last week that, aside from national security matters, everything else can be discussed and he’s confident the two sides will “reach an agreement to deescalate.”

Events last year showed how international business is starting to take geopolitical volatility in its stride. Even the the 12-day war between Israel and Iran — which included Iranian missile strikes on a US air base in Qatar — barely disrupted business activity.

UAE financial institutions this month continued to buy Saudi bonds at roughly the same pace as before, people familiar with the matter said, and major Emirati lenders have helped underwrite many of those sales, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

“It could slow growth, but as long as it doesn’t escalate to an existential threat to either side, most folks will come around eventually and go back to doing business as usual,” said Ryan Bohl, a senior Middle East and North Africa analyst at Rane Network, a risk consultant.