Markets seen opening lower on global cues

Gulf markets are poised to open lower, tracking global equity markets, as oil prices fell and disappointing U.S. consumer prices highlighted investors' concerns about the pace of the economic recovery.Traders expect volumes to remain thin and price changes to be within a tight range.

Saudi stocks on Saturday dropped for a fourth session, led by banks and telecom stocks. The Saudi stock exchange declined 0.7 per cent to 6,134 points."To avoid more declines, investors need motivated news to push the market above the resistance line at 6,195 points," says Thamer Al Saeed, analyst at Emirates NBD in Saudi Arabia.For the coming weeks, Al Saeed believes that the market will be heading further downhill as there is a lack of major positive catalysts."Investors must watch the main support level 6,000, any close below this level will push the market to 5,800 points," he adds.Some market participants expect index heavyweight Saudi Basic Industries Corp (SABIC) to post second-quarter results on Sunday.In Dubai, investors may focus on jeweller Damas, whose chief executive said the company will sign an extension with lenders to its standstill agreement on $872 million of debt by the end of this week.