25/12/2010
Saudi shares led the Middle East stock rally last week
Gaining 1.7 percent on weekly basis, closing at 6,609.53 points
Arab stocks extended gains last week, deriving momentum from rising global markets, surging oil prices and easing euro zone debt worries, financial analysts said Friday.
Saudi shares led the Middle East stock rally last week, receiving additional support from the Kingdom’s revelation of a record budget with big spending potential.
The world’s largest crude exporter said that it planned to spend $154.7 billion in fiscal 2011.
TheTadawul All Share Index (TASI) of the Arab world’s largest stock exchange gained 1.7 per cent on weekly basis, closing at 6,609.53 points, the highest in seven months. The liquidity for the week came in at SR15.36 billion as compared to SR16.70 billion for the past week.
On a week-to-week basis, the sector activity was all positive except one losing sector. The gaining sectors ranged from 0.50 percent by the agriculture and food industries to 4.04 percent by transport sector. On the other hand the losing sector was the insurance sector with -0.49 percent.
The top gainers for the week were The National Metal Manufacturing & Casting Co. with a gain of 14.45 percent to close at SR28.50 and The Jabal Omar development Co. with a gain of 9.93 percent to close for the week at SR17.70. The top losers for the week on the other hand were the Saudi Advanced Industries Co. with a loss of -3.59 percent to close at SR13.45 and The Company for Cooperative Insurance losing -2.72 percent to close at SR 107.50, theFinancial Transaction House said in its weekly market commentary.
“I believe several sectors will benefit from the huge Saudi spending on development projects, foremost the banking, infrastructure, construction and the retail trade sectors,” said Mohammad Anqari, a Riyadh-based Saudi analyst.
He conceded that Saudi stocks reacted excessively to developments on global markets in 2010, but expected the market to behave differently in 2011.
“I think the Saudi stock exchange will behave more logically in 2011, given the steps taken by the European governments to come to grips with the euro zone debt crisis and the satisfactory performance of the world economy in 2010,” Anqari said.
