Saudi barely changed before budget

Dubai : Saudi stock market yesterday closed barely changed ahead of the release of its 2018 state budget.

The Saudi index closed 0.1 per cent higher. It briefly dipped into negative territory after an explosion was heard in Riyadh and smoke was seen; Saudi air defences intercepted a ballistic missile fired towards Riyadh, Saudi-owned television al-Arabiya reported, and Yemen’s Houthi movement said it had fired a missile towards the city.

The market had risen moderately in early trade in anticipation of the release of the 2018 budget after the close. The budget was expected to feature a moderate increase in spending as Riyadh seeks to lift flagging economic growth.

Cement shares, which had surged in recent days on hopes that the budget will boost infrastructure spending, lost steam. But Makkah Construction shot up 10pc.

Dubai’s index fell 0.4pc in a broad-based decline although builder Drake & Scull, the most heavily traded stock, added 0.9pc. The company does business in Saudi Arabia.

Abu Dhabi dropped 0.7pc, pulled down by a 4.2pc decline by Dana Gas.

The Qatari index surged 3.8pc, its biggest daily gain since January 2016, to its highest level since late September. It rose above its 100-day average for the first time since April.

Real estate firm Ezdan Holding jumped 7.9pc. It plunged 57pc between end-2016 and mid-November, partly because of a weak Qatari property market. But it has been rebounding strongly since then, supported by news a shareholder has filed suit to block the firm’s plan to go private.

Barwa Real Estate climbed 5.6pc after saying it signed a 27-year contract with the government to lease two plots of land on which it would develop a residential area for foreign workers.