Saudi Stock Value Jumps 20.8%

A Saudi investor monitors Tadawul, the Saudi Stock Exchange. (Getty Images)
A Saudi investor monitors Tadawul, the Saudi Stock Exchange. (Getty Images)
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Saudi Stock Value Jumps 20.8%

A Saudi investor monitors Tadawul, the Saudi Stock Exchange. (Getty Images)
A Saudi investor monitors Tadawul, the Saudi Stock Exchange. (Getty Images)

The total value of Saudi stock traded in the market during August jumped by 20.8 percent compared to the previous month, at a time when the total purchases by foreign investors exceeded the purchases made by Saudi and Gulf investors.

The positive growth comes as the Saudi market completed the second and final phase of joining the MSCI Emerging Markets Index.

The Saudi stock market index closed Monday up 58 points, recording a “green” positive closure. It ended trading on a 0.7 percent increase, to close at 7971 points, amid transactions worth $853.3 million.

The total value of shares traded for August amounted to $21 billion, while total stock market capitalization reached $506.6 billion at the end of this period, decreasing by 7.53 percent from the previous month.

The total value of shares purchased by Saudi investors during this period amounted to $9.5 billion representing 45.58 percent of total buying activity, and sales of $13 billion, representing 61.91 percent of total selling activity.

Total ownership of Saudi investors stood at 89.77 percent of total market capitalization by the end of August, representing a drop of 0.44 percent from July.

As for the GCC investors, the total value of shares purchased during this period amounted to $173.3 million, representing 0.82 percent of total buying activity, and sales of $493.3 million, representing 2.35 percent of total selling activity.

Total ownership of GCC investors stood at 1.90 percent of total market capitalization by the end of August, representing a decrease of 0.04 percent from the previous month.

During the same period, the value of foreign investors shares amounted to $11.2 billion, representing 53.60 percent of total buying activity, and sales of $7.5 billion, representing 35.73 percent of total selling activity.

Total ownership of foreign investors stood at 8.33 percent of total market capitalization late August, representing an increase of 0.47 percent from July.

These developments come at a time when the asset value of public and private investment funds in the Kingdom jumped during Q2 of this year, reaching levels of $86.1 billion, compared to $82.6 billion in Q1.



Oil Prices Edge up as Market Assesses Trump's Tariff Plans

FILE PHOTO: A ship is moored near storage tanks at an oil refinery off the coast of Singapore October 17, 2008. REUTERS/Vivek Prakash/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A ship is moored near storage tanks at an oil refinery off the coast of Singapore October 17, 2008. REUTERS/Vivek Prakash/File Photo
TT

Oil Prices Edge up as Market Assesses Trump's Tariff Plans

FILE PHOTO: A ship is moored near storage tanks at an oil refinery off the coast of Singapore October 17, 2008. REUTERS/Vivek Prakash/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A ship is moored near storage tanks at an oil refinery off the coast of Singapore October 17, 2008. REUTERS/Vivek Prakash/File Photo

Oil prices picked up on Tuesday, after the previous session's sell-off, as the market assessed US President-elect Donald Trump's planned trade tariffs on Mexico and Canada and his aim to increase US crude production.

Oil prices had fallen more than $2 a barrel on Monday after multiple reports that Israel and Lebanon had agreed to the terms of a ceasefire in the Israel-Hezbollah conflict. A senior Israeli official said Israel looks set to approve a US plan for a ceasefire on Tuesday, but some analysts said Monday's sell-off in oil prices had been overdone.

Brent crude futures were up 43 cents, or 0.6%, at $73.44 a barrel as of 1414 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate crude futures were at $69.38 a barrel, up 44 cents, or 0.6%.

Brent crude futures fluctuated between $73.30 and $73.80 a barrel in afternoon trading.

"Today’s intra-day fluctuations are probably more of the function of assessing Trump’s overnight pledge to impose tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China," PVM analyst Tamas Varga said.

On Monday, Trump said he would impose a 25% tariff on all products coming into the US from Mexico and Canada.

The vast majority of Canada's 4 million bpd of crude exports go to the US Analysts have said it is unlikely Trump would impose tariffs on Canadian oil, which cannot be easily replaced since it differs from grades that the US produces.

On Monday, Reuters reported that Trump's team is also preparing an energy package to roll out within days of his taking office that would increase oil drilling.

A senior executive at Exxon Mobil said on Tuesday that US oil and gas producers are unlikely to "radically increase'' production.

OPEC+ MEETING

Market reaction on Monday to the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire news was "over the top" as the broader Middle East conflict has "never actually disrupted supplies significantly to induce war premiums" this year, said senior market analyst Priyanka Sachdeva at Phillip Nova.

Elsewhere, OPEC+ at its next meeting on Sunday may consider leaving its current oil output cuts in place from Jan. 1. The producer group is already postponing hikes amid global demand worries.