Saudi, Egypt gain as markets reopen after Eid holiday; Qatar slips

Saudi Arabia’s stock market rose on Sunday as it reopened after a week of public holidays to celebrate Eid and was buoyed by a rise in oil prices.

Oil prices rose nearly 1.5 per cent on Friday, and ended higher on the week, as impending European Union sanctions on Russian oil raised the prospect of tighter supply and had traders shrugging off worries about global economic growth. 

Saudi Arabia’s benchmark index finished 0.6 per cent higher, with Al Rajhi Bank  gaining 1.8 per cent and oil behemoth Saudi Aramco  gaining 2.1 per cent.

Saudi Arabia’s minister of industry and mineral resources said the ministry has a goal to attract investments worth $32 billion to its mining and minerals sector through nine new projects, state news agency SPA reported. 

Dr Sulaiman Al-Habib Medical Services , however, declined 0.9 per cent, as the stock traded ex-dividend.

Outside the Gulf, Egypt’s blue-chip index rose 0.6 per cent, extending gains from the previous session when it jumped more than 3 per cent.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ordered the government to set a programme for the private sector’s participation in state-owned assets, with a target of $10 billion annually for four years, private television channel Extra News reported on Tuesday. 

However, Egypt’s economy remains exposed to the tensions in Europe.

Bucking the trend, the Qatari index eased 0.3 per cent, hit by a 2.9 per cent fall in petrochemical maker Industries Qatar.