JEDDAH, 16 April 2006 — A wave of selling yesterday sent the Saudi stock market tumbling 8.4 percent, the steepest fall since 1998. After dropping 11.5 percent last week, the Tadawul All-Share Index (TASI) closed yesterday at 14,376.01, down 1,318.83 points from Wednesday’s closing, its lowest level since the first week of October. The market was closed on Thursday to carry out a 5-for-1 share split of industrial, cement and electricity companies.
The index is 13.98 percent or 2,336.63 points down so far this year.
The market turnover was slightly over SR8 billion as out of 79 companies traded, 78 went down. The lone gainer was Bank AlJazira. Its shares rose 6.90 percent to SR368.
Sources close to the Saudi Capital Market Authority (CMA) said the two dealers who have been suspended for manipulating stocks of three companies were still managing their stock funds in the name of their wives.
The CMA said in an announcement last week that the dealers, who were not identified, were suspended for manipulating shares of Al-Mawashi Al-Mukairish United Co., Alujain and. SEC, which are most active speculative stocks on the market.
The CMA statement said the two dealers “carried out large transactions in the shares of the firms to create a false impression about the prices of the shares of the firms and the volumes, a practice regarded as a form of fraud and manipulation.”
A CMA source said some of the suspended dealers have started operating their funds through the Internet as the process requires only the username and password.
