JEDDAH, 12 October 2005 — The Saudi stock index again crossed the 15,000 mark yesterday as the Tadawul All Share Index (TASI) gained 133.24 points at 15,039.49 just before the closing.
The Banking and Insurance indices were down at 32,988.88 and 1,783.78 points, respectively, while other indices were higher.
Only Bank AlJazira and Bank Albilad shares were trading higher while shares of rest of the banks were down. Shares of the National Company for Cooperative Insurance were also down slightly at SR643.
The Industrial index gained 736.68 points at 40,275.09. Shares of the petrochemical giant Saudi Basic Industries Corp. were higher by 1.65 percent at SR1,651.50.
However, financial analysts have called for the division of SABIC shares into 10 companies in order to prevent a possible Saudi index collapse.
Turki Fadaak, a member of the Saudi Economic Society, said the division of shares would help accommodate a large number of small-scale investors and increase a company’s liquidity. He also pointed out that many speculators put their money in stocks of smaller companies, keeping away from big companies such as SABIC as well as banks having high share prices.
He said SABIC shares, which account for more than 30 percent of the market, play a big role in the movement of the index. “If SABIC is divided into 10 companies it will help reduce this impact and will have positive effect on the market,” he added. There are a number of companies under SABIC.
Almarai Co. shares were lower by 1.29 percent at SR822.
Meanwhile, the founders committee of Dana Gas, the first regional private-sector natural gas company to offer shares to the public, yesterday issued the results of its highly successful initial public offering in Dubai, which closed on Oct. 3. Subscriptions of 288 billion dirhams were received, with a record number of subscribers from across the region, confirming the strong appetite for investments in the natural gas industry.