Gulf stocks rise as oil zooms past $110

Middle East stock markets rose on Wednesday as oil prices skyrocketed past $110 a barrel on worries over the impact of aggressive sanctions against Russia for invading Ukraine.

Oil prices surged to seven-year highs as supply disruption fears mounted following hefty sanctions on Russian banks, while traders scrambled to seek alternative oil sources in an already tight market.

Top oil exporter Saudi Arabia may sharply hike prices of crude for Asia in April, trade sources said on Wednesday, with differentials for most grades hitting all-time highs. read more

Meanwhile, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, Russia and allies, together known as OPEC+, is due to meet later in the day, where they are expected to stick to plans of adding 400,000 barrels per day of supply each month.

Energy-heavy Saudi Arabia’s benchmark index (.TASI) rose 0.5%, with oil giant Saudi Aramco (2222.SE) up 1.8%.

In Abu Dhabi, the index (.FTFADGI) climbed 1.2%.

Shares of Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (TAQA.AD) gained 2.5% after its board proposed a special cash dividend.

Dubai’s main index (.DFMGI) edged up marginally.

Dubai Islamic Bank (DISB.DU) rose 0.6% after shareholders approved its annual cash dividend.

The Qatari index (.QSI) gained 0.3%, boosted by industrials and real estate stocks.

Reporting by Tanvi Mehta in Bengaluru; Editing by Vinay Dwivedi

This article was originally published by Reuters.