Saudi stock depicts a solid gain

The Saudi stock market ended  trading session solidly in the green. The Tadawul All-Share Index (TASI) spending almost entire session in the green territory edged higher to 8,170.73, up 96.97 points or 1.20 percent from previous level. It performed within a trading range of 108.7 points yesterday. On an YTD basis, TASI again registered a positive return over 20 percent. All market cap indices finished to the upside, with Large Cap advancing 1.35 percent. Thirteen out of Tadawul’s 15 sectors extended gains, reflecting an accumulation of 1,238 points. Agriculture and Tourism were best performing sectors of the day, growing by 2.14 percent and 1.66 percent respectively. Only Media and Telecom sectors could not manage for gains, trimming less than 12 points jointly. Most of heavy weights rose from previous day’s levels, with market leader SABIC (Saudi Basic Industries Corp.) surging by 2.22 percent and Al-Rajhi Bank 2.05 percent. SABIC, with a liquidity of SR 581.2 million, also topped the value chart, reflecting a relative market share of 10.6 percent and closing at SR 102.75. The advancers outnumbered declining stocks easily on the Tadawul (market); as for 68 percent stocks that gained, 17 percent ended lower and 15 percent remained unchanged. Share price of Al-Ahlia Insurance Company rallied to a maximum growth of 10 percent, clinching the spot as top gainer amongst Saudi stocks. Saudi Arabian Cooperative Insurance was another significant gainer, moving up by 8.55 percent. Share trading activity remained high as compared to previous day; turnover went up by 36.01percent in terms of volume and 18.2 percent in terms of value. More than 196 million shares worth SR 5.5 billion changed hands on the Saudi stock market. The 50-day average for trading turnover is closer to 210.5 million shares worth SR5.4 billion. Source: Arab News