RIYADH, 5 June 2006 — Saudi shares rose in busy dealings yesterday as retail investors poured cash into the market amid hopes that planned commission cuts would further boost the Arab world’s largest bourse. The Tadawul All-Share Index finished up 2.63 percent at 11,945.53 points after hitting a session low of 11,446.91 points on profit-taking. Gainers led decliners 74-4 on turnover of SR26 billion ($6.93 billion), the highest since March 18 when measures announced by the government sparked a sharp but short-lived jump in the market which was then at the height of a crash.
Amiantit Wins Orders Worth SR97 Million
RIYADH, 5 June 2006 — Pipeline manufacturer Saudi Arabian Amiantit said yesterday it secured orders worth SR97 million ($25.9 million). The new orders are for the supply of pipelines to state-owned utility firms, Amiantit said in a statement posted on the bourse website. “Results this year (appear) promising,” Chief Executive Farid Al-Khalawi said in the statement without giving figures. The stock finished up 9.35 percent at SR38. In December, the firm said it had sealed orders worth SR1.7 billion or more than half of its projected turnover for 2006.
Kuwaiti Bank Launches Islamic Fund
KUWAIT, 5 June 2006 — The Commercial Bank of Kuwait (CBK) launches an Islamic fund yesterday with a capital of up to 100 million Kuwaiti dinars ($345.8 million), a bank official said. “The new fund will be conservatively managed with a balanced investment strategy and will invest only in prime Shariah compliant companies in each sector of the Kuwaiti economy,” Fowzi Al-Ateeqi, CBK’s head of investments, said in a statement. Subscription to the Tijari Islamic Fund will close on June 22 and will be open to all residents of Kuwait. The fund will have a variable capital ranging from 5 million dinars to 100 million dinars, the bank said. Al-Madar Finance and Investment Co. will be the supervisory body that ensures investments comply with Islamic principles.