Tadawul Wrap:

After three straight sessions of gains, Tadawul All Share Index (TASI) decreased by 228 points (-1.7%) due to investors booking profits. The index opened in the green but shortly after took a downturn and fell for nearly the whole session before closing at 13,506 levels. All but one sector ended the session in the negative. The Energy sector fell by -0.7% as SAUDI ARAMCO and PETRO RABIGH declined -0.7% and -2.1%, respectively. The Banks sector was the top loser, recording a loss of -2.9%. The loss was attributed to the decline in most of the banking stocks, including ALRAJHI which ended the session with a loss of -3.5%. SAUDI ELECTRICITY recorded a loss of -2.6% contributing to the overall decrease of -2.1% in the Utilities sector. Trading volumes and values closed in the positive after falling for the past four sessions, increasing by +13.8% and +32.9%, respectively.

 

Market Wrap International:

On Tuesday, US stock markets soared, with the S&P500 closing at 4,462.21, up +1.6%. The Nasdaq100, which focuses on technology, rose +2.2% to 14,210.30 at the end of the trading day. Except for energy, which fell, the rally was broad-based across all sectors. In the United States, earnings season has started, with IBM declaring that, despite suspending their business in Russia, they intend to meet the top end of their revenue growth target in 2022. The greater story was Netflix's (NFLX) earnings report, which came out after the market closed. The corporation said that they lost 200,000 subscribers in the first quarter and expect to lose another 2 million in the second quarter in a shocking disclosure. During after-hours trading, the company's stock dropped more than ~25%, to roughly $348 per share.

European markets returned today after a long weekend and closed in the red zone on escalation of the geopolitical situation combined with fears from US policy tightening. The European Stoxx 600 opened on a negative note and traded mostly negative after that to end the session -0.8%. In Germany, DAX went back into negative after tensions have escalated again between Russia and Ukraine, slipping by -0.1%. FTSE 100 also fell by -0.2% while CAC 40 went back to losses and fell by  -0.8% after two green sessions.

In Asia, stock markets were mixed on Tuesday with the Hong Kong stocks leading losses in the region. SHCOMP ended the session almost flat (slightly below the previous close) after the country’s central bank announced on Monday that it will increase financial support for industries, businesses and people affected by Covid-19. Moreover, the Hang Seng Index resumed trading and recorded a loss of -2.3%, which is mainly due to the -3.8% fall in the Hang Seng Tech index as Chinese tech stocks suffered losses. Meanwhile, Nikkei 225 and KOSPI closed in the green, rising by +0.7% and +1%, respectively. In India, SENSEX fell -1.2%, extending its fall for the fifth straight session.