Oil prices help Gulf rise, Saudi petchems strong

Brent oil above $65 a barrel for first time since mid-2015

12/12/2017 18:29 AST

Middle East stock markets mostly rose on Tuesday after the shutdown of a North Sea pipeline pushed Brent oil above $65 a barrel for the first time since mid-2015.

The Saudi stock index gained 0.3 percent, with petrochemical companies, whose profit margins tend to benefit from higher oil prices, outperforming. Saudi Kayan added 3.7 percent and PetroRabigh rose 3.0 percent.

Utility Saudi Electricity climbed 3.5 percent. The state budget for 2018 will be announced next Tuesday and officials may detail plans to raise domestic energy prices, which could benefit the company’s earnings depending on the structure of the price hikes.

But real estate firm Dar Al Arkan, the most heavily traded stock, fell 1.4 percent to 12.42 riyals after plunging 9.9 percent on Monday.

The stock has been a focus of the Saudi stock market in recent weeks, soaring to a close of 13.99 riyals in heavy trade on Sunday from around 7.50 riyals in mid-November, when international index compiler MSCI said it was adding the stock to its Saudi Arabia Index.

But many analysts think it may have become overvalued because of heavy speculative buying by local retail investors, who pushed its valuation above 50 times trailing earnings.

Dubai’s index added 1.2 percent as builder Drake & Scull, which posted a big loss for the third quarter, shot up 6.7 percent to its highest level since February. Some investors are betting that restructuring will help the company report much better fourth-quarter earnings.

In Abu Dhabi, the index gained 0.6 percent on the back of Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, which climbed 3.5 percent.

Qatar’s index surged 1.4 percent, rebounding for a third straight day from near six-year lows. Real estate firm Ezdan Holding jumped 6.3 percent and shipper Qatar Navigation rose 4.2 percent.

Egypt’s index rose 1.1 percent as blue chip lender Commercial International Bank gained 1.6 percent, bouncing from near its lowest levels this year.

Reuters