Tadawul All Share Index (TASI) declined by -129 points (-0.14%) on Thursday, to close at 11,421. TASI started the session on a muted note but soon the index came under selling pressure and gradually dropped by 93 points before the closing auction. In the closing auction, the index lost another 40 points. In general, all sectors were closed in the red zone except for the insurance sector and the food and beverage sector. Advance to decline ratio came in at a healthy 1:5. The index's losses were driven by the banking sector (-1.7%), followed by the materials sector (-0.8%), and energy (-0.8%), which contributed to the decline of the index by a total of 92 points. Trading activity witnessed a drop in the amount and value of trade by 21% and 20%, respectively. TASI is likely to remain directionless in near-term given volatility in international markets though result season may produce stock/sector specific excitement.
The global equity markets closed the tumultuous week on a divergent note. In the U.S, the surprise recovery seen on Thursday fizzled out on Friday on the release of latest surveys on inflation expectation and consumer sentiment, both pointing to slow-down in real demand and stickiness of inflation. The pull-back effectively pared the weekly gains and left the key indices at levels seen during COVID-19 period. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite lost -2.4% and -3.1% respectively. All eleven sectors, closed in red while bond yields hovered close to recent highs. Big results in financial sectors also failed reverse the momentum.
In Europe, the announcement of scrapping a significant part of recent generous fiscal package in the U.K lifted the sentiment. Low valuation also prompted investors to take a fresh look. The benchmark Stoxx Euro 600 Index closed the session with a gain of 0.6%, off to an intraday high of 2.6%.
In Asia, markets responded to surprised recovery in the U.S a day before and closed with significant gains of 1.2-3.3%. Sentiment were also positive ahead of much-anticipated twice-a-decade leadership meeting of China Communist Party. Financials and tech names were in the lead with investors deciding to look for bottom fishing opportunities amid recent battering in key markets.