Most Gulf bourses gain on earnings, oil

Most Gulf stock markets closed higher on Wednesday as investors focused on corporate earnings and firmer oil prices, while the Egyptian stock exchange snapped a nine-day winning streak, reports Reuters.
Saudi Arabia's benchmark index gained 0.7 per cent, with oil major Saudi Aramco up 1.5 per cent, while Alinma Bank advanced 3.2 per cent following a sharp rise in annual net profit.
In a separate bourse filing, the bank also proposed a capital increase through bonus shares, granting one bonus share for every five shares held.
Crude prices - a catalyst for the Gulf's financial markets - hit their highest level since late September on Wednesday after a winter storm disrupted US crude output while a weak US dollar and continued Kazakh outages lent further support.
Aramco-led energy stocks lifted the market, though gains were limited by caution ahead of today's US Federal Reserve meeting, with attention on Chair Jerome Powell's remarks, the 2026 easing outlook, and Fed independence, said Joseph Dahrieh, Managing Director at Tickmill.
"Nevertheless, the Saudi market appears poised for further gains, boosted by Q4 earnings, the potential opening of the market to foreign investors on February 1, and solid non-oil growth projections for the year."
Dubai's main share index advanced 0.8 per cent, with blue-chip developer Emaar Properties rising 2.3 per cent.
Among other gainers, Dubai Financial Market jumped 1.8 per cent, as the bourse operator is slated to report its earnings later in the day.
In Abu Dhabi, the index added 0.4 per cent, with ADNOC Gas up 1.4 per cent.
The energy firm will invest more than $20 billion to increase its gas processing capacity by almost 30 per cent by 2029, its CEO Fatema Al Nuaimi said on Tuesday.