Tadawul Review:

Tadawul All Share Index (TASI) underwent a session of loss due to profit-taking, falling 113 points (-0.9%) to close at 12,739 levels. The index rose to 12,928 levels as the market opened, but then took a downturn in the first trading hour and fell for the most part of the session. The Energy sector decreased by -2.8% as ARAMCO and PETRO RABIGH prices reduced by -2.9% and -5.7%, respectively. MAADEN, TASNEE, SABIC, SAUDI KAYAN and SIPCHEM all were down in the range of 2-5%, contributing to the overall -2.5% deduction in the Materials sector. Trading volumes and values fell by a whopping -12.5% and -19.9%, respectively.

Market Wrap International:

Equities rose on Wednesday, boosted by a steep decrease in oil following the UAE's announcement that it will call on other OPEC members to raise production. The S&P500 was up +2.6% on broad-based purchasing, with only two out of the 12 sectors closing in red (Energy and Utilities). The major contributors to the gains were technology (+4.0%), financials (+3.6%), and consumer discretionary (+2.9%). The Dow Jones increased by +2.0% as did the Nasdaq Composite by +3.6%. An advisor to the Ukrainian President's comments that the government was open to negotiating Russia's demand for neutrality if security guarantees were provided fueled optimism that a compromise might be struck. Inflation figures for February will be released on Thursday, with core inflation projected to grow +6.4 percent year over year and headline inflation expected to rise +7.9 percent.

European equities ended their session with a strong rebound after declining for a couple of sessions amid unclarity over geopolitical situation. The EURO Stoxx 600, after losing most of the 2021 gains, rallied and closed +7.0% in green to end its losing run of four sessions, led mainly by financials (+6.9%), consumer discretionary (+8.7%), and industrials (+5.6%). The DAX surged +7.92%, as did the CAC +7.13% and the FTSE rose +3.25% with major benchmarks across the region broadly higher. Investors will be watching the ECB meeting on Thursday for indications on how to wind down stimulus measures, while a conference of European leaders the next day could provide information on budgetary support to mitigate the war's impact.

Most Asian markets extended losses for the third session this week after oil sanctions were imposed on Russia. In China, SHCOMP started the session positive but then reversed its direction to close -1.1% lower. In Hong Kong, after starting the session in the green zone, Hang Seng turned to losses and reached (-3.2%) intra-day low but then reduced losses to only -0.7%. Nikkei 225 was green for the majority of the session before closing down by 0.3%. Sensex, for the second consecutive day surged by +2.3%.