Gulf bourses mixed, Aramco gains on 2021 profit boost

Major Gulf bourses were mixed in trading on Monday, with Saudi Arabia’s benchmark index (.TASI) rising a day after oil giant Saudi Aramco (2222.SE) posted a surge in annual profit.

Across the globe, share markets were in a sober mood as fighting in Ukraine raged on with no sign of stopping, leaving investors clutching at hopes for an eventual peace deal, while oil prices climbed anew as supplies remained tight.

Oil prices jumped $3 on Monday, with Brent above $110 a barrel, as European Union nations consider joining the United States in a Russian oil embargo, while a weekend attack on Saudi oil facilities caused jitters.

Saudi Arabia’s benchmark index (.TASI) advanced 0.4%, with state-run Saudi Aramco (2222.SE) up 0.8%, valuing it at 8.65 trillion riyals ($2.31 trillion).

The oil giant had risen over 4% on Sunday after posting a near double annual profit. read more

The jump in stock took Aramco’s valuation to 8.76 trillion riyals, or the equivalent of $2.34 trillion, more than that of Microsoft (MSFT.O) but still behind Apple’s (AAPL.O) $2.68 trillion.

Abdullah Al Othaim Markets (4001.SE) fell 1.9% after it began trading ex-dividend.

The Abu Dhabi index (.FTFADGI) fell for the second consecutive session, down 0.3%.

Dubai’s main share index (.DFMGI) was trading 0.3% higher, boosted by financials and industrials.

Emirates NBD Bank (ENBD.DU) was up 2.2% while Dubai Investments PJSC (DINV.DU) was up 3.5%.

The Qatari index (.QSI) was nearly flat, up 0.1%.

Shares of Commercial Bank (COMB.QA) were up 1.1%, after the company’s shareholders approved raising foreign ownership limit to 100%.

($1 = 3.7515 riyals)Reporting by Tanvi Mehta in Bengaluru; Editing by Edmund Blair

This article was originally published by Reuters.