UAE gains on trade optimism, earnings hopes; Saudi slips in volatile trade
The United States and the European Union on Sunday struck a framework trade agreement that will impose a 15% import tariff on most EU goods, half the previously threatened rate.
Meanwhile, senior U.S. and Chinese officials will meet in Stockholm later on Monday to try to extend their tariff truce before an August 12 deadline.
Saudi Arabia's benchmark index (.TASI), opens new tab retreated 0.7%.
Banque Saudi Fransi (1050.SE), opens new tab and Arab National Bank (1080.SE), opens new tab dropped 5.3% and 3.8%, respectively, after their shares traded ex-dividend.
Petrochemical giant Saudi Kayan (2350.SE), opens new tab reversed early gains to close slightly lower as its second-quarter loss, though halved from a year earlier, was wider than analysts expected.
Arabian Cement (3010.SE), opens new tab slid more than 3% after its second-quarter profit fell short of estimates.
"A potential rebound hinges on continued positive earnings announcements and a recovery in oil prices", said George Pavel, general manager at Naga.com Middle East.
Dubai's benchmark index (.DFMGI), opens new tab rose as much as 1.4%, before paring gains to end up 0.3% at its highest close in 17-1/2 years. That was the fourth straight day of gains, supported by strong second-quarter earnings and global trade optimism, led by a 2.3% gain in Emirates NBD Bank (ENBD.DU), opens new tab.
The Abu Dhabi index (.FTFADGI), opens new tab edged up 0.2%, supported by a nearly 2% jump in heavyweight ADNOC Gas (ADNOCGAS.AD), opens new tab.
Qatar's benchmark index (.QSI), opens new tab eased 0.4%, as traders locked in profits following a recent rally, with most sectors closing in the red, led by a 2.3% decline in Qatar Islamic Bank (QISB.QA), opens new tab.
Investors are now looking ahead to the next wave of corporate results this week, after a strong run in bank earnings helped lift sentiment across the region, Pavel noted.
Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index (.EGX30), opens new tab edged down 1.4% following a record peak in the previous session, with Talaat Moustafa Group (TMGH.CA), opens new tab declining over 3.5%.
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The Independent
24 minutes ago
- The Independent
European Union assumes its faces 15% tariffs in the US from Friday. But a key text still isn't ready
The European Union is working on the assumption that the United States will impose a 15% tariff on most EU exports from Friday, even though the two sides have yet to complete a key document clarifying how the agreement will operate. Last weekend, U.S. President Donald Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen reached a political agreement that would see 15% duties imposed on around two-thirds of EU produce, worth around 380 billion euros ($434 billion). The tariffs are set to enter force on Friday, but as of Thursday the two sides were still working on a joint statement that would lay out the terms of their understanding, European Commission spokesman Olof Gill said. The document wouldn't be legally binding. 'It is the clear understanding of the European Union that the U.S. will implement the agreed across the board tariff ceiling of 15%,' Gill said. The commission negotiates trade terms on behalf of the the EU's 27 member countries. Carve outs were agreed for a range of 'strategic' goods like aircraft and aircraft parts, certain chemicals, some drug generics or natural resources. Gill said that 'it is also our clear understanding that the U.S. will implement the exemptions to the 15% ceiling.' 'The U.S. has made these commitments. Now it's up to the U.S. to implement them. The ball is in their court,' Gill said. European wine and spirits won't escape the 15% levy on Friday, but may do later as negotiations on additional exemptions to the new tariff regime continue, he said. Before Sunday's meeting, Trump had threatened the bloc with 30% tariffs, which the EU's top trade official said would effectively mean the end of trade between them. Over the last three months, the commission drew up retaliatory measures worth tens of billions of euros to enact should the talks fail. Those countermeasures are due to take effect on Aug. 7, but Gill said that 'if everything goes as expected,' they would be frozen. 'If we have reached a deal, we don't need the retaliatory tariffs,' he said.
New Statesman
24 minutes ago
- New Statesman
Ursula von der Leyen's deal exposes the delusions of EU boosters
Photo byThe French prime minister François Bayrou said it was a 'dark day' for Europe. Under the trade deal that Donald Trump and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen announced in Scotland on 26 July, the US would impose a 15 per cent tariff on most European imports, but the European Union would not increase tariffs on American imports in return. According to Bayrou, 'an alliance of free peoples' had 'resolved to submission'. It was definitely a climbdown for the EU. Ever since Trump was re-elected last year and threatened new tariffs on imports to the US, the European Commission had threatened counter-measures – just as it did during the first Trump administration, when it responded to US tariffs on European aluminium and steel with its own tariffs on American products like bourbon. In the end, though, the EU simply accepted the new US tariffs this time – and on top of that, promised to increase purchases of American liquified natural gas and weapons. To be clear, what was agreed in Scotland is a political or 'framework' deal and a lot of the important details have yet to be worked out. In particular, it is not yet clear whether pharmaceuticals – a hugely important sector for the EU and especially Germany – will be included or how much steel will be exempt from tariffs. Moreover, the promises that von der Leyen made to increase investment in the US have already turned out to be empty – there is no way the EU can buy $750bn of American oil and gas in the next few years and it cannot direct companies to invest in the United States. Nevertheless, in the few days since the deal was announced, it has widely been seen as a humiliating European capitulation to Trump. Many critics of deal – especially EU boosters who fantasise about the idea of 'strategic autonomy' or a 'geopolitical Europe' – seem to imagine that the EU could have followed an alternative approach and stood up to Trump. In reality, though, there was little alternative to what Bayrou called 'submission'. Critics of the deal think EU member states undermined von der Leyen and forced her to negotiate from a position of weakness. It is true that some member states, especially Germany and Italy, ultimately backed off from threats of retaliatory measures because they feared that a full-on transatlantic trade war would ultimately hit important sectors of their economies harder than they are now being hit by the new US tariffs. But the idea that the EU had leverage over the US that it had but did not use – and that if it had used it, it could have struck a much better deal – is wishful thinking. As the world's largest trading bloc, the EU has long thought of itself as an economic superpower and prided itself on its ability to negotiate trade deals – that, of course, was one of main arguments why the UK should remain within in the EU. This deal has somewhat undermined that self-image. After all, in May, the UK was able to negotiate a slightly better deal with the Trump administration, with a baseline tariff of 10 per cent. But what really makes the EU weak relative to the US is its vulnerability in security terms. The idea that the EU had leverage over the US that it did not use only makes sense if you think that economics and security are completely separate realms and that security issues are irrelevant to trade negotiations and cannot be linked. But deep down, despite all the tough talk and the threats of retaliation to Trump's tariffs, European politicians knew that taking such a confrontational approach could have consequences for US support for Ukraine – or even for Nato and the US security guarantee to Europe itself. Subscribe to The New Statesman today from only £8.99 per month Subscribe It's striking that this trade deal was being negotiated just as Trump seemed to be becoming increasingly frustrated with Vladimir Putin and more supportive of Ukraine. Earlier in July, Trump had reinstated supplies of US weapons to Ukraine – albeit paid for by Europeans – and threatened new economic sanctions against Russia if Putin did not make progress in negotiations within 50 days. (The day after the EU-US trade deal was announced, Trump said he was now giving Putin even less time.) As tentative as European leaders know Trump's shift on Ukraine is, they do not want to jeopardise it. EU trade commissioner Maroš Šefčovič, who apparently spent hundreds of hours in frustrating negotiations with Trump administration officials, hinted at this in a briefing the morning after the announcement of the deal. He said he could not go into the details of everything that was discussed with Trump in Scotland, but 'it was not just about trade'. In the end, what has made the EU so dependent on the US, and made the EU's 'submission' inevitable, is the war in Ukraine – or, to be more precise, the way that, for the last two and half years since the Russian invasion in 2022, European leaders have insisted that their own security depends on a Ukrainian victory. Related
Reuters
24 minutes ago
- Reuters
Trump says Mexico trade deal extended for 90 days
WASHINGTON, July 31 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday he had agreed with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum to extend an existing trade deal with Mexico for 90 days and continue talks over that period with the goal of signing a new deal. "Mexico will continue to pay a 25% Fentanyl Tariff, 25% Tariff on Cars, and 50% Tariff on Steel, Aluminum, and Copper. Additionally, Mexico has agreed to immediately terminate its Non Tariff Trade Barriers, of which there were many," Trump said in a Truth Social post.
