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Saudi Equities Plunge on Wednesday as Middle Eastern Conflict Widens

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Saudi Exchange-traded shares tumbled on Wednesday as the widening Middle Eastern conflict pushed the Tadawul All Share Index 1.25% in the red.

The US and Saudi Arabia launched joint attacks on Iran-backed targets in Iraq, signaling the potential widening of the war. The strikes were made as retaliation for drone attacks on oil targets in the Saudi Arabian nation, media reports said.

"After a heavy sell-off in the oil market over the last three days, prices popped higher in early morning trading, with Brent up more than 4% at the time of writing. Renewed strength comes after the US said it intercepted a surprise attack on US troops. Saudi Arabia intercepted drones from Iranian-backed groups in Iraq, which were targeting Saudi energy infrastructure," ING said in a note. "These developments throw cold water on the idea of a swift de-escalation in the Persian Gulf."

Further to this, Iran reportedly rejected Oman's proposal on the operations of the Strait of Hormuz, Reuters reported, citing an Iranian official. The source said that the proposal was "unreasonable" since it would not serve the Middle Eastern country's interests.

Meanwhile, market watchers are also turning their attention to the US Federal Reserve's rate decision, which is just hours away. Policymakers are expected to hold.

Back at home and on the corporate front, SAL Saudi Logistics Services (SASE:4263), First Milling Co. (SASE:2283), and Riyadh Cables Group (SASE:4142) posted their financial results for the first half of 2026. All three stocks reported higher revenue and attributable net profit for the six months ended June 30.

SAL Saudi Logistics and First Milling rose 4.53% and 3.55%, respectively. Riyadh Cables, on the other hand, declined 0.87% at closing.

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Dow Jones^EEM^EXI^FAS^FAZ^GLD^IBB^IGM^IGV^IPK^IVV^IWMNasdaq Composite^IYE^IYH^IYJ^IYK^IYW^PMR^QQQ^RTH^SOXXS&P 500^SPY^UNG^USO^VDC^VHT^VIS^XLE^XLF^XLI^XLK^XLP^XLV^XRT^XSD$BETH$BITO$EETH