MIDEAST STOCKS-Gulf bourses in red on Trump's sweeping tariffs

By Ateeq Shariff

April 3 (Reuters) - Stock markets in the Gulf ended lower on Thursday due to concerns that sweeping U.S. reciprocal tariffs will worsen global trade tensions and could tip the world into recession.

On Wednesday, U.S. President Donald Trump unveiled a 10% baseline tariff on all imports, and higher duties on dozens of countries, including some of its biggest trading partners.

Saudi Arabia's benchmark index .TASI - which resumed trading after a four-session Eid break - dropped 1.2%, weighed by a 1.4% fall in Al Rajhi Bank 1120.SE and a 4.9% slide in Saudi Arabian Mining Company 1211.SE.

Among other losers, oil giant Saudi Aramco 2222.SE retreated 1.7%.

The decline in the Saudi bourse was primarily influenced by the negative sentiment pervading regional and global markets in the wake of Trump's tariff announcements, said Joseph Dahrieh, Managing Principal at Tickmill.

"The concurrent decline in oil prices further weighed on the Saudi market's performance."

Oil prices - a catalyst for the Gulf's financial markets - fell 6% as OPEC+ speeding up its unwinding of oil output cuts in May compounded already-heavy losses following Trump's announcement of sweeping new tariffs on Wednesday.

Dubai's main share index .DFMGI declined 1.7%, dragged by a 9.7% slump in blue-chip developer Emaar Properties EMAR.DU, its biggest intraday fall since March 2020, on trading ex-dividend.

According to Dahrieh, despite solid fundamentals and relatively low exposure to oil price volatility, the persistent negative sentiment can continue to impact Dubai's stock market performance.

In Abu Dhabi, the index .FTFADGI fell 0.8%.

Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index .EGX30 - which also reopened trading after a four-session Eid holiday - closed 1% lower, with Commercial International Bank COMI.CA losing 3.3%.

Meanwhile, Egypt's non-oil private sector slipped into contraction in March, marking the first downturn of 2025 as demand weakened, S&P Global reported on Thursday.

Stock exchanges in Qatar and Oman remained closed for Eid.

(Reporting by Ateeq Shariff in Bengaluru; Editing by Leroy Leo)

((AteeqUr.Shariff@thomsonreuters.com; +918061822788;))