Stock markets across the Gulf closed lower on Sunday amid escalating military action between Israel and Iran, raising alarm over the potential for a wider regional conflict in the Middle East.
Israel launched strikes on Iranian nuclear sites, ballistic missile facilities, and senior military figures starting Friday, vowing a prolonged campaign to prevent Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons. In retaliation, Iran carried out its own attacks and canceled Sunday’s nuclear negotiations, which Washington had described as the only viable path to halt Israeli bombardments.
In Saudi Arabia, the benchmark index (.TASI) dropped 1%, with widespread losses across sectors. Al Rajhi Bank fell 1.5%, while Saudi National Bank—the country’s largest lender—dropped 3.1%. In contrast, energy heavyweight Saudi Aramco gained 1.8%.
Oil prices surged on Friday, jumping 7% as tensions between Israel and Iran intensified, raising fears of broader supply disruptions across the oil-exporting region. The conflict escalated further after Israel targeted Iranian energy infrastructure late Saturday, including a major offshore platform in the South Pars gas field—shared with Qatar and responsible for a significant portion of Iran’s gas production.
The Qatari index (.QSI) plunged 3.2%, marking its sharpest single-day decline since April. All listed stocks ended in the red, including Qatar National Bank, which dropped 4.2%, and Qatar Gas Transport Nakilat, down 3.3%.
Kuwait’s stock exchange (.BKP) suffered a 4.6% fall, with Kuwait Finance House losing 3.7%. Shares in Jazeera Airways crashed 18.4% amid mounting regional airspace restrictions that prompted airlines to reroute or suspend operations.
Outside the Gulf, Egypt’s EGX30 blue-chip index (.EGX30) slumped 4.6%, its steepest daily drop in nearly 14 months. Losses were led by a 4.3% decline in Commercial International Bank and a 12.4% tumble in investment firm EFG Holding.
The heightened geopolitical risk and fears of economic fallout have left regional markets rattled, with further volatility expected if hostilities persist.
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