Tadawul All-Share Index (TASI) closed positively on Monday for the second day in a row, rising +32 points (+0.3%) to close at 10,578 levels. TASI index began the session positively, but was pressured at the start of trading hours and recorded an intraday low of -31 points in the first hours of trading. However, TASI started building its positive momentum after that and continued rising throughout the trading session, reaching its intraday high at the end of the session and before the closing auction, achieving +42 points. In the closing auction, the index trimmed some of its profits, losing 10 points. In general, 17 out of 20 sectors closed in the green zone, while 176 shares rose and 36 fell. Materials (+0.7%), Banks (+0.2%), and Real Estate (+1.9%) sectors contributed the most to the index's rise of +23 points Stock-wise, Al Rajhi Bank (+0.9%), Jabal Omar (+3.8%), and ACWA Power (+1%) contributed most to the rise of the index. The trading activity witnessed a remarkable improvement in volume and value by 94% and 64%, respectively, to reach 149mn shares and SAR3.7bn. TASI is likely to sustain its recovery amid rangebound activity.
The equity markets in the U.S, U.K, and most of Asian countries (China, Hong Kong, Japan) were closed for trading on account of New-Year holiday. Accordingly, updates on economic data and other news flow was thin.
In Europe, the Stoxx Euro 600 Index moved higher by 0.1% amid half of the normal day’s volume. The fall in gas prices in the region to pre-war levels remained major positive update. Investors are also keeping a close eye on the rising COVID-19 infection in China and the risk of new travel restrictions on passengers travelling from China.
In Asia, KOSPI and SENSEX were the only two major markets open for trading. KOSPI gave its intraday gains of 1% to close with minor losses of 0.5% while SENSEX recorded a modest gain of 0.5%. A private survey of major indices in China shows economic activity in China has actually contracted in 4Q22 due to COVID-19 related restrictions. Asian markets will likely react to the finding once markets resume trading.