Dubai Stocks Slide, Muscat Soars as Gulf Markets Diverge on War

Gulf stock markets have diverged sharply since the Iran war began, and the region is now home to both the best-performing global bourse over the past month — and the worst.

Dubai’s main stock index, which notched double-digit gains last year amid a continuing post-pandemic influx of capital, residents and tourists, is the world’s worst performer so far in March. Meanwhile, Oman’s benchmark surged to the top of global rankings, buoyed by firmer oil prices and what has so far been its relative insulation from the worst of the strikes.