Tadawul Review:

Tadawul All Share Index (TASI) managed to bounce back, after a bleak last session, adding 50 points (+0.4%) to close at 12.881 levels. The Energy sector rose by +0.4% mainly due to ARAMCO and PETRO RABIGH which increased by +0.4% and +2.8%, respectively. MAADEN and CHEMANOL closed in gains of +3.5% and +3.7%, respectively, contributing to the overall rise of +1.3% in the Materials sector. NAHDI made its debut on Tadawul, the second-biggest IPO post-ARAMCO, and jumped +14.5% to close at SAR 150/sh. Trading volumes and values decreased by -19.4% and -9%, respectively. The market has managed to recover from the loss it had incurred in the previous session and with Brent prices at USD 116.6/bbl, TASI outlook remains strong.

Market Wrap International:

On Tuesday, stocks continued to rise, but Treasury yields rose, as investors took heart from Fed Chair Jerome Powell's previous comments that the Fed will move to contain inflation while remaining behind the curve. The S&P500 gained +1.1% due to broad-based buying, with technology (+1.4%), consumer discretionary (+2.4%), and communications (+2.0%) contributing the most to advances. The Dow Jones gained +0.7%, while the Nasdaq Composite surged +2.0%. Traders are pricing in a further +7.5 rate hikes by the end of the year, implying the Fed Funds rate would finish at +2.24% in 2022, despite the fact that the Fed has only hiked rates by 0.25%.

In Europe, markets traded mostly in a positive zone, ending the session higher amid optimism over a potential peace deal in Ukraine. However, outlook remains blurry as concerns over higher inflation, surging energy costs and supply chain disruptions are expected to dent the growth prospects of the region. The European Stoxx 600 advanced on Tuesday by +0.8% after being flat in yesterday’s session. In Germany, DAX (+1.0%) managed to reverse course after closing lower on Monday. In the UK, FTSE100 managed to end in the green by +0.5%, while in France’s CAC 40 was up +1.2%.

In Asia, all major markets closed positive yesterday despite rising oil prices over the last few days. In China, investors are still concerned about the rising COVID-19 cases putting pressure on the SHCOMP (+0.2%) which was slightly up on Tuesday. In Hong Kong, investors preferred dip-buying which resulted in Hang Seng spiking by +3.1%. In Japan, Nikkei 225 rose by +1.5% while in South Korea, KOSPI closed +0.9% higher. In the Indian market, SENSEX reversed course mid-day to close 1.3% higher led by Tech stocks and Reliance Industries.