DUBAI: Most stock markets in the Gulf ended higher on Thursday as traders awaited key US data that was expected to show inflation easing and pave the way for the Federal Reserve to start its long-awaited interest-rate cut cycle in September.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell told lawmakers on Capitol Hill on Wednesday “more good data” would build the case for the US central bank to cut interest rates. Futures pricing implies about a 75% chance of a cut in September. Economists forecast annual US CPI slowed to 3.1% in June from 3.3% in May.

Monetary policy in the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is usually guided by the Fed’s decisions as most regional currencies are pegged to the US dollar.

Saudi Arabia’s benchmark index edged 0.1% higher, helped by a 5.2% jump in Al Taiseer Group.

Elsewhere, oil giant Saudi Aramco gained 0.2%.

Aramco expects to raise $6 billion from its three-part bond sale on Wednesday, the oil giant’s first foray into the debt markets in three years, a document showed.