Gulf markets seen steady after oil price fall

Gulf Arab stocks are seen trading sideways on Sunday, with investors wary following declines on global markets. Saudi Arabia's index fell 0.7 percent on Saturday downbeat oil prices weighed, its sixth decline in seven sessions since April 3's three-and-a-half year high. Oil fell on Friday to post a weekly loss following gloomy economic data from China, which also roiled world equity markets. "We will probably see sideways markets for the next couple of weeks, but I don't expect a big sell-off - we will probably get the odd day when people get nervous, but we shouldn't get the kind of panic we've witnessed previously," says Ibrahim Masood, senior investment officer at Mashreq Bank. Saudi stocks are likely to consolidate after most bluechip firms reported first-quarter earnings that were broadly in line with expectations, says Masood. "Following the stimulus measures, the retail sector has done very well," says Masood. "Banks have been recovering following two and half years of consolidation where they have been building up their balance sheets. Petrochemicals had pretty strong margins from a historical context."