DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) – Gulf equity markets made massive gains Thursday with Dubai’s main stock market rising 13 percent, just two days after closing at its lowest point of the year.
Abu Dhabi’s stock market closed 6.7 percent higher on Thursday while the Saudi index closed 8.9 percent higher.
The upswing in Gulf equities comes on the back of a rise in the price of benchmark U.S. crude, which closed 54 cents higher at $56.47 on Wednesday. Brent crude gained $1.17 to close at $61.18.
It also came a day after the U.S. stock market had its best day in more than a year after the Federal Reserve said it foresaw no interest rate hikes in the first quarter of 2015.
Arabtec, Dubai’s largest construction company, and Emaar, the developer behind the world’s tallest tower in the United Arab Emirates, gained 15 percent Thursday on the Dubai stock exchange. Both had lost around 10 percent in trading Tuesday.