Saudi Basic Industries Corp (SABIC) made its largest drop for eight-months on Wednesday as oil fell below $70, spurring traders to ditch petrochemical stocks as Middle East markets tracked a global equity sell-off. SABIC, the Gulf Arab region's largest listed firm, fell 5.4 percent, its biggest decline since August 17. Saudi Arabia's index dropped 2.4 percent to a three-month low.
"The main theme driving the market down is oil after it broke below $70," said financial analyst Youssef Kassantini. Dubai's index slumped to a 10-week low. Arabtec fell 3 percent after UBS downgraded the builder to "sell" from "neutral". "Markets are falling on concerns about the second tier consequences of euro weakness and lower levels of demand for Middle East products," said Zahed Chowdhury of Al Mal Capital. Kuwait dropped 0.7 percent, tracking regional declines and analysts said investors were not differentiating between stocks. Industries Qatar slid 3 percent, mirroring losses in SABIC, as the index lost 2.3, its biggest 2010 fall. Egypt's index fell 4 percent to a two-month low.
Comments
Comments are closed.