Tadawul Review:

Tadawul All Share Index (TASI) ended the last session of the week flat, adding a mere 4 points to close at 12,948 levels. As the market opened, TASI fell sharply, losing 26 points, and then underwent a fluctuating phase recovering. ARAMCO closed at SAR 42.6/sh remaining unchanged while PETRO RABIGH gained +4.3% to contribute to the overall increase of +0.2% in the Energy sector. The Materials sector ended the session on a positive note, courtesy of SIPCHEM which recorded gains of +4.3% to close at an all-time high of SAR 53.5/sh. EQUIPMENT HOUSE jumped a whopping +9.9%, adding +0.5% to the Health sector. Trading volumes increased by +8.2% whereas values decreased by -1.4%. Investors await further development with regards to the global oil market, as the change in Brent prices will likely determine the TASI levels in the coming sessions.  

Market Wrap International:

As investors looked aside an increasing number of analysts calling for the Federal Reserve to begin on an aggressive streak of interest-rate hikes this year, U.S. equities launched a late afternoon rebound Friday to seal in their second straight week of gains. The S&P 500 Index rose +0.5% to end its first two-week winning streak since early February. The only sectors that declined were information technology and consumer discretionary. Dow Jones was also up +0.4%. The Nasdaq 100 Index, which is heavily weighted in technology, however dipped -0.2%.

In Europe, most markets closed slightly in the green on Friday and saw volatility caused by geopolitical tensions and rising energy prices. Stoxx 600 managed to rise on Friday by +0.1%, eliminating part of the Thursday session’s losses. In Germany, DAX closed slightly higher, rising by +0.2%. After bearing losses in early session, FTSE 100 was able to reverse the trend and closed in a positive zone, increasing by +0.2%. In France, CAC 40 ended the week’s last session flat.

In Asia, negative sentiment dominated markets as most of the went red in the week’s last session on geopolitical and energy risks. In China, SHCOMP dropped sharply in the afternoon session to close -1.2% in losses. In Hong Kong, similar pattern was perceived as Hang Seng fell noticeably in the afternoon session, ending the session -2.5% lower. In India, Sensex went red for third session, losing -0.4% on Friday. Nikkei 225 closed slightly positive and rose by +0.1% while Kospi was flat.