JEDDAH — The BMG Saudi index increased slightly to 499.04 points yesterday. The market’s total turnover, however, fell sharply by 23 percent to SR3.1 billion ($836 million) versus SR4.1 billion ($1.1 billion) recorded in Sunday’s trading session.
Four sectors were able to gain more ground, whilst three sectors descended. The best performer was the electricity sector, with a 2.1 percent increase in its closing level, whereas both the insurance and telecommunications sectors appreciated by 1.1 percent. The industrial sector also stayed in positive territory, moving up by 0.1 percent, whereas the services sector dropped by 0.4 percent.
Seventeen shares recorded gains, whilst four shares stood still and nine depreciated. Saudi Fransi Cooperative Insurance Company was the session’s best performer, stepping up by 9.9 percent to SR100. Meanwhile, the worst performance was registered by The National Company of Saudi Arabia, falling by 4.3 percent to SR33.25 per share. The leading shares, Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC) and Al-Rajhi Bank, moved in opposite directions, with SABIC going up by 0.4 percent to SR139.75, while Al-Rajhi Bank’s share price declined by 0.6 percent to SR85.25 per share.
