Tadawul Review:

Tadawul All Share Index (TASI) ended Wednesday’s session in red, losing 20 points (-0.2%) and breaking its upward momentum of the previous two sessions as investors booked profits. The market opened in green and climbed up within the first trading hour, but then took a downturn, going below the previous close before noon. Prior to closing, TASI posted a mild recovery ending the session at 12,655 levels. All but five sectors closed in the red. The energy sector rose by 3.2% courtesy of ARAMCO, which hit a record high closing price of SAR 43.05/share since its listing. Maaden and Sipchem shares also hit a record high closing up by 3.3% and 1.4% respectively contributing to the 1.7% rise in the Materials sector. Trading volumes and values increased by +4.1% and +2.4%, respectively. TASI may look to consolidate at current levels with investors booking profits amid geopolitical uncertainty.

Market Wrap International:

Following improved economic statistics and statements from Fed Chairman Jerome Powell that the economy is expanding enough to sustain rate hikes while committing to proceed cautiously, global markets and rates surged on Wednesday. Despite the uncertainties created by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Jerome Powell supported a quarter-point rate hike this month to start a series of increases before Congress in his semi-annual testimony. All 11 sectors in S&P500 (+1.9%) indexes rose, with financials rising 2.6% after a severe drop this week. The Dow Jones gained 1.8%, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 1.6% and the Russell 2000 gained 2.7%.

European shares recovered as well, with commodity gains boosting miners and rising yields boosting financials. Despite statistics showing inflation surged to a new record high, the Euro Stoxx 600 rose +0.9%, as did the DAX +0.7%, CAC +1.6%, and FTSE100 +1.4%. Headline inflation in the Euro region increased to 5.8% from +5.1% earlier, exceeding expectations of a +5.6 percent increase in the year to February, with core inflation rising to +2.7% over +2.6% projected and +2.3% previously.

In Asia, major indices plunged as oil climbed higher and geopolitical uncertainty persisted. Investors continued to dump riskier assets, shifting focus towards safer investments. In China, the New Energy Vehicle (NEV) sector led losses (-2.1%), dragging SHCOMP lower to close -0.1%. The Hang Seng (-1.8%) touched its 2 year-low on the back of losses in tech sector. In Japan, Nikkei 225 recorded losses (-1.7%) putting an end to a three-day rally. Similarly, Indian shares snapped their two-day rally, declining by 1.4% as GDP growth missed estimates.