MIDEAST STOCKS-Gulf stocks slip ahead of US jobs data; SABIC weighs on Saudi index

By Md Manzer Hussain

BENGALURU, Jan 8 (Reuters) - The Saudi bourse led Gulf equities lower in early trade on Thursday as investors weighed escalating geopolitical tensions against mixed U.S. labour market signals.

The United States seized two Venezuela-linked oil tankers in the Atlantic Ocean on Wednesday, including one sailing under Russia's flag, as part of President Donald Trump's push to tighten control over oil flows in the Americas.

Saudi Arabia's benchmark stock index .TASI fell 0.8%, with almost all constituents in negative territory. Materials, utilities and financials stocks led the losses.

Saudi Basic Industries Corp 2010.SE (SABIC) slid as much as 4.8% to 48.20 riyals a share, its lowest in nearly 17 years.

The decline came after the chemical major said in a bourse filing on Thursday it had agreed to divest its entire stake in SABIC Europe and its Engineering Thermoplastics (ETP) business in Europe and the Americas for a combined enterprise value of $950 million.

Elsewhere, Al Rajhi Bank 1120.SE eased 0.8% and Saudi Arabian Mining Co 1211.SE slipped 1.6%.

The Qatari benchmark index .QSI declined 0.5%, with most stocks lower. Mesaieed Petrochemical Holding MPHC.QA fell 1.1%, while Qatar National Bank QNBK.QA, the region's largest lender, shed 0.8%.

Dubai's benchmark stock index .DFMGI eased 0.2%, dragged by a 4.4% drop in Gulf Navigation Holding GNAV.DU and a 1% decline in Emaar Development EMAARDEV.DU.

The Abu Dhabi benchmark index .FTFADGI edged down 0.1%. Alpha Dhabi Holding ALPHADHABI.AD lost 0.7% and Presight AI PRESIGHT.AD fell 1.9%.

Data on Wednesday showed U.S. job openings fell to a 14-month low in November, while hiring remained sluggish, pointing to cooling labour demand.

Investors are awaiting U.S. non-farm payrolls data due on Friday for further clues on the Federal Reserve's interest-rate path.

Gulf markets tend to track shifts in U.S. monetary policy expectations, as most regional currencies are pegged to the dollar.