The Saudi stock market, the largest in the Arab world, dived sharply to a 14-month low in the week ending on Thursday, pulling along other Gulf stocks as investor confidence hit rock bottom.
The Tadawul All-Shares Index (TASI) closed the week at 10,046.83 points, after dropping below the 9,700-point barrier during trading. TASI, which crossed 20,000-points in February, lost 21.1 percentage points this week and is 39.9 percent off its last year close of 16,712 points.
The Dubai Financial Market Index dived 15.6 percent in the week to finish at 464.20 points, its lowest close since February last year.
The Abu Dhabi Securities Market also closed the week down 10.5 percent to finish at 3,277.61 points, its lowest level in 15 months.
Kuwait's Stock Exchange, the second largest in the Arab world, finished the week down 5.3 percent at 9,658.60 points, its lowest close since the beginning of September.
Other stock markets in the oil-rich Gulf, which have been undergoing a severe correction for months after several boom years, incurred substantial losses this past week.