Dubai, UAE–The Saudi index started its week on the rise, reflecting the increase in oil prices by about a dollar per barrel at the end of last week, while the UAE stock exchanges opened their weekly trading on a decline.
TASI continued its outstanding performance during the week, as it rose during the five trading days and ended its week on Thursday higher, supported by gains in the shares of health care, financial services, and raw materials companies, in addition to the rise in the share of Al-Rajhi Bank, the largest Islamic bank in the world by market capitalization.
In comparison, UAE stock exchanges closed down at the end of their weekly trading, under pressure from banking and real estate stocks.
TASI’s outstanding performance
The 0.4 percent increase in the Saudi index on Sunday (January 22, 2023) was due to a 1.5 percent rise in RETAL Urban Development Company shares and 0.8 percent in Aramco’s shares. Similarly, Al-Rajhi Bank gained 0.5 percent.
Saudi’s main index, TASI, rose 0.4 percent also on Monday (January 23, 2023), supported by gains in the banking and energy sectors, as the share of Aramco rose 1.7 percent, and the share of Al-Rajhi Bank rose 1 percent.
On Tuesday (January 24, 2023), TASI rose by 0.3 percent because of increases in the raw materials, energy, and finance sectors. Aramco gained 0.6 percent, and the Al-Rajhi Bank gained 0.8 percent.
TASI also increased by 0.1 percent on Wednesday (January 25, 2023), supported by gains in the health care, financial services, and raw materials sectors, with shares of Dr. Sulaiman Al Habib Medical Services Group rising 3 percent and Dallah Health 5.3 percent. Aramco ended a six-session rally, down 0.3 percent, while Al-Rajhi Bank rose 0.4 percent.
Shares of health care, financial, and raw materials companies all contributed to Thursday’s (January 26, 2023) 0.1 percent increase in the Saudi index. For example, shares of Dr. Sulaiman Al Habib Medical Services Group increased by 2 percent, while shares of Ma’aden increased by 1.4 percent. In addition, the market value of Al-Rajhi Bank, the largest Islamic bank in the world, has increased by 1.4 percent.
The most significant drop in Abu Dhabi’s index
The Abu Dhabi index dropped 0.3 percent on Monday (January 23, 2023), making it down for the fourth day. In addition, First Abu Dhabi Bank fell by 2 percent, while Alfa Abu Dhabi Holding fell by 0.9 percent.
On Tuesday (January 24, 2023), the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange gained 0.6 percent, reversing losses across four sessions. Both First Abu Dhabi Bank (2.7 percent) and Aldar Properties (1.3 percent) increased in value today.
On the other side, the index dropped by 0.4 percent on Wednesday (January 25, 2023), as shares of the country’s largest bank, First Abu Dhabi Bank, fell 1.8 percent, and shares of International Holding Company plummeted 0.2 percent.
The share price of First Abu Dhabi Bank dropped by 8 percent on Thursday (January 26, 2023) to its lowest closing price in more than eight months, contributing to a 1.7 percent decrease in the Abu Dhabi Securities Market index.
This was the worst daily performance for the index since September. In addition, despite a 7 percent gain in net profit for 2022, the bank reported a 26 percent decline in net profit for the fourth quarter, underperforming analyst estimates.
Furthermore, The First Abu Dhabi Bank share price dropped by 4.8 percent on Friday (January 27, 2023), contributing to the index’s 2.7 percent drop, the day’s worst loss since mid-May.
Dubai’s index: Mixed Results
Losses in the industrial and real estate sectors weighed on the main index in Dubai on Monday (January 23, 2023) as the share price of Emirates Central Cooling Systems Company fell 2.5 percent and the share price of SALIK fell 2.6 percent.
Gains in the banking industry and the real estate sector helped push the main index in Dubai up by 0.4 percent on Tuesday (January 24, 2023). The value of Dubai Islamic Bank increased by 2.2 percent, the value of Mashreq Bank by 3.1 percent, and the value of Emaar Properties by 0.3 percent.
In addition, utilities, financial services, and real estate companies declined on Wednesday (January 25, 2023), causing a 0.4 percent drop in the Dubai index. This was led by a 0.8 percent drop in DEWA shares and a 1.3 percent drop in ECSC shares, while heavyweight Emaar Properties lost 0.2 percent.
The Dubai benchmark index rose slightly on Thursday (January 26, 2023). Still, it fell 0.8 percent on Friday (January 27, 2023) due to heavy losses in the utility and real estate sectors, contributing to the index.