(Bloomberg) -- Most Middle Eastern equity gauges dropped at the start of the trading week, following losses in global markets on Friday as the coronavirus emanating from China spread.

Saudi Arabian stocks fell the most among Gulf peers, with energy giant Aramco trading at its lowest level on a closing basis since it listed last month. The world’s most profitable company dropped 1% to 34.10 riyals as of 11:47 a.m. in Riyadh.

“There might be more to this downward trend” globally, Ali Malik, an investment adviser at Bank of Singapore Ltd., said in a Bloomberg TV interview on Sunday. But past viral outbreaks have shown that “as soon as the new instances stop getting reported, we see a bounce back,” he said.

MIDDLE EASTERN MARKETS:

  • Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index slips 0.7%
    • Saudi Basic Industries -1.1%; Al Rajhi Bank -0.6%
  • Dubai’s main index drops 0.2% while Abu Dhabi’s ADX General Index declines 0.2%
    • READ: Emirates NBD Sells NMC Stake Weeks After Muddy Waters
  • Kuwait’s stock market falls 0.4% while the QE Index in Doha drops 0.3%
  • Israel’s main index falls 0.8%, the most in the region, ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump’s planned release of a Middle East peace proposal
  • Earnings ahead: Emirates NBD, First Abu Dhabi Bank and Dubai Islamic Bank are expected to report earnings in the U.A.E. this week, while Sabic and Maaden should disclose in Saudi Arabia

To contact the reporter on this story: Abeer Abu Omar in Dubai at aabuomar@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Lin Noueihed at lnoueihed@bloomberg.net, Paul Wallace, Michael Gunn

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