Tadawul Review:

Tadawul All Share Index (TASI) underwent another session of gains, rising 146 points (+1.2%) to close at 12,351 levels. TASI was almost unchanged in the first trading hour, but soon after it surged as investors’ fears eased the Russia-Ukraine conflict to reach its intra-day high. just half an hour before the close. The majority of sectors closed in green (19 out of 21), Banks led today’s rally and rose by +2.6% while their gains since the start of the year stood at 15% (YTD), Materials rose by +0.1% and Energy was flat. Trading volumes and values enhanced, rising by +1% and +10% respectively to reach 192mn shares and SAR 8.5bn. The market has added 322 points in the last two sessions fueled by elevated commodity prices and strong results amid easing geopolitical concerns.

Market Wrap International:

Global equities rose on Tuesday amid easing tensions over the Ukraine while Treasury yields rose after U.S. producer prices rose more than forecast for January. Equities halted a three-day decline as Russian President Vladimir Putin said he hopes for a diplomatic solution to tensions while announcing a partial pullback of thousands of troops that had massed near the Ukrainian border. The S&P500 was +1.6% higher, led by advances in tech and consumer discretionary stocks. The tech heavy NASDAQ index was up +2.5% along with Dow +1.2%. US treasury yields trended up 10Yr and 30Yr yields all rising by +6/+7bps respectively.

Equities in Europe rebounded as tension between Russia and Ukraine de-escalated which reduced panic in markets from a potential military conflict. The broad European index (Stoxx600) managed to recover most of yesterday’s losses and rose by +1.8%. In Germany, DAX surged by +2.0%. Also, similar trend was observed in France as CAC40 advanced by +1.9% along with UK’s FTSE100 +1.0%.

In Asia, major indices wittiness mixed session despite gains on wall street and European equities. SHCOMP ended a volatile session but managed to rise by +0.5% after declining by double the amount in yesterday’s session (-1%). Also, similar momentum was perceived in India as SENSEX rallied by +3.1%. However, Nikkei225 (-0.8%), HangSeng (-0.8%) and Kospi (-1.0%), buckled the broader trend and declined.