The general index of the Saudi stock market ‘TASI’ deepened its losses at the close, falling by 4.44 percent (equivalent to 525 points) at the end of trading on Sunday, the first session of the week.
The declines in the Saudi stock market are affected by the state of fear in global markets with the exacerbation of inflation levels and the tightening of monetary policy.
Oil prices fell about 6 percent in Friday’s trading due to fears that major central banks raising interest rates could slow the global economy and reduce energy demand.
The dollar rose this week to its highest level since December 2002 against a basket of currencies, which also put pressure on prices and made oil more expensive for buyers who use other currencies, stated a report by Reuters.
Saudi stock index is heading to record the longest consecutive losing streak since the beginning of 2020, in addition to the drop in the oil price by the largest amount in three months on Friday.
The value of trading reached about 6.3 billion riyals, through trading on about 179 million shares. The prices of 195 shares decreased, compared to an increase of 11 shares out of a total of 214 listed shares.
Financial analyst Hamad Al-Olayan in an interview with Arabic TV Al-Arabiya said that the reaction in the Saudi market today follows the declines in the oil markets.
Olayan pointed out that despite the declines, the ongoing economic diversification in the Kingdom and good reserves give the market greater flexibility.
The decline was led by Wafra share by 10 percent, followed by Anaam Holding by 9.98 percent, while the rises were led by “Jaco” share by 8.4 percent, followed by the catering share by 1.88 percent.
At the level of trading values, Al-Rajhi Bank issued about 650 million riyals, through trading about 7.7 million shares, while the trading volumes were issued by “Dar Al-Arkan” shares by about 20.5 million shares.
The market sectors witnessed a collective decline, with the media and entertainment sector leading by 6.4 percent, long-term commodities by 5.3 percent, and the investment and finance sector by 4.88 percent.
The Gulf markets also see a decline after Saudi Arabia. Qatar market came second after the index fell by 3.1 percent, and Kuwait ranked third after it fell 2.7 percent.
In Bahrain, the market declined by 1.3 percent, while we find green trading in the Muscat market by 0.3 percent.
