Most major stock markets in the Gulf fell in early trade on Thursday tracking Asian shares lower, although the Saudi index was supported by positive earnings and rising oil prices, reports Reuters.
In Asia, MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.1 per cent, as investors fretted about growing deflationary pressures in China and a mixed bag of Japanese earnings, while a standoff over the US debt ceiling overshadowed a meeting of G7 finance leaders.
Dubai's main share index dropped 0.7 per cent, hit by a 1.2 per cent fall in blue-chip developer Emaar Properties and a 1.1 per cent decline in Emirates NBD Bank.
Elsewhere, logistics firm Aramex retreated 2.2 per cent, after posting a steep fall in quarterly profit.
In Abu Dhabi, the index lost 0.6 per cent, weighed down by a 0.8 per cent decrease in Emirates telecoms group Etisalat, also known as e&.
Vodafone Group said on Thursday the chief executive of its largest shareholder, e&, would join its board as the two companies agreed to deepen their strategic relationship.
Separately, Abu Dhabi oil giant ADNOC intends to offer 15 per cent of its shares in unit ADNOC Logistics & Services (ADNOC L&S) through an initial public offering (IPO) on the Abu Dhabi stock exchange, the company said on Wednesday.
The Qatari benchmark was down 0.3 per cent, hit by a 0.7 per cent fall in the Gulf's biggest lender Qatar National Bank.
Saudi Arabia's benchmark index rose 0.2 per cent, with Riyad Bank advancing 2.4 per cent and petrochemical maker Saudi Basic Industries Corp putting on 1.4 per cent.
Among other gainers, Savola Group jumped more than 6 per cent, its biggest intraday gain in three years, after reporting a sharp rise in first-quarter profit.
Oil prices - a key catalyst for the Gulf's financial markets - bounced back after dropping by more than a dollar per barrel the previous day, supported by stronger fuel demand data from the United States, the world's top oil consumer.
