Saudi stocks race up on higher oil prices

Saudi Arabia’s stock market surged yesterday, bolstered by a pickup in oil prices to their highest since late 2014.

The Saudi index finished in positive territory for a sixth straight day, gaining 1.6 per cent. Brent oil rose to nearly $75 a barrel on a drop in US crude inventories and after sources said Saudi Arabia aimed to push oil prices higher.

Al Rajhi Bank rose 2.9 per cent and Samba Financial Group 3.5 per cent, while Saudi Arabian Mining advanced by 6.1 per cent.

Saudi stocks have been gathering momentum in recent months as investors anticipate foreign fund inflows when the kingdom joins emerging market indexes.

Al Sagr Co-operative Insurance registered its heaviest trade since February last year, closing 4.7 per cent higher, while Wala’a Co-operative Insurance gained 2.5 per cent after the companies said they would consider a possible merger.

Abu Dhabi’s index closed 0.5 per cent up.

Dana Gas recovered from early losses to close flat. Shareholders have approved payment of a cash dividend for 2017, its first in several years.

However, courts in Britain and the UAE, ruling in the dispute over whether it must redeem $700 million of Islamic bonds, have given conflicting rulings on whether it can legally make the dividend payout.

Dubai’s index finished 0.2 per cent down as Dubai Islamic Bank fell 2 per cent.

The bank posted a 16 per cent increase in first-quarter net profit on Wednesday, broadly in line with a forecast by SICO Bahrain.

In Egypt, the blue-chip index rose 0.4 per cent, with Commercial International Bank, the biggest lender, adding 0.7 per cent.

A jump in heavyweight Qatar National Bank helped to lift Qatar’s index.

Meanwhile, the commodities rally helped lift emerging market stocks to a three-week peak yesterday after Saudi Arabia was reported to be seeking oil prices as high as $100 a barrel, but Turkey’s lira slipped after stellar gains in the previous session. MSCI’s benchmark emerging equities index rose 0.8 per cent, extending gains into a third day, led by resources firms after the broad Commodity Research Bureau index of commodity prices touched its highest level since July 2015.