Tadawul Review:

After undergoing three consecutive positive sessions, Tadawul All Share Index (TASI) managed to change directions declining by 44 points (-0.3%) to close at 12,832 levels. The market initially rose to hit a new 52-week intraday high of 12,960 levels but failed to maintain the momentum and slipped past its last close to end the session in the red. Many sectors ended the last session in negative including the Energy sector which fell by -0.6%. MAADEN, PETROCHEM, and SIIG fell by -2.0%, -5.3%, and -4.7%, respectively, contributing to the overall decrease of -0.5% in the Materials sector. The Health Care Equipment & Svc sector rose by +1.4%, due to the majority of the firms within the sector recording gains ranging within +1% to +4%. Trading volumes and values closed in the green increasing by +12.6% and +26.9%, respectively. Brent prices continue to trend upwards which might keep TASI at elevated levels.

Market Wrap International:

On Monday, US markets fell and Treasury yields rose as Fed Chair Jerome Powell signaled the Fed would act more aggressively than expected to get inflation under control at upcoming meetings. He said that the central bank will take "essential steps" to bring inflation under control, even if that means hiking rates sooner than expected. Powell also mentioned the prospect of 0.50% rate hikes at upcoming sessions, rather than the more customary 0.25%, if incoming data merited it. The S&P500 slipped -0.04% down towards the close, trimming previous weakness after significant gains last week, with gains in energy (+3.8%) offset by weakness in consumer discretionary (-0.8%), communications (-0.7%), and technology (-0.2%). The Dow Jones fell -0.6%, while the Nasdaq Composite fell -0.4%.

European stocks were mixed as the conflict in Ukraine weighed on morale, with Ukraine rejecting Russia's demand that it lay down its arms and withdraw. The European Union and Mariupol were mulling stronger penalties against Russia, including an oil embargo. Given its exposure to resources and financials, the Euro Stoxx 600 rose +0.04% and the FTSE100 gained +0.51%, benefiting from increased commodity prices and rates. The DAX fell -0.60 percent

In Asia, the majority of indices have closed in the red zone with only a few ending the session positive. In China, with the continued rise in COVID-19 cases, SHCOMP witnessed a somewhat volatile session but managed to rise in the last trading hour to close +0.1% higher However, in Hong Kong, investors placed a greater concern on increasing COVID cases putting more pressure on Hang Seng which closed down by 0.9%. KOSPI and SENSEX fell by -0.8% and -1.0% respectively.