Saudi stocks hit wartime low as Aramco slides, Gulf oil exports rebound
Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All-Share Index fell 1.17% on Tuesday, dragged down by oil giant Aramco, as investors digested signs that Gulf oil exports are recovering.
Saudi Arabia’s stock market ended Tuesday’s trading session at its lowest level of the US-Israel-Iran war, dragged down by Saudi Aramco. The drop comes as oil markets digest signs that crude exports through and around the Strait of Hormuz are recovering.
What happened: Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All-Share Index fell 1.17% on Tuesday, leaving the Gulf’s largest stock market down 5.6% over the past six months. Oil behemoth Saudi Aramco, which has a market capitalization of roughly $1.6 trillion, fell 1.4% for the day to 25.18 riyals ($6.70), its lowest level in more than six months and its lowest point since the war began Feb. 28.
Aramco shares had traded below 25 riyals shortly before the conflict erupted, but climbed as oil prices surged. Brent crude reached about $120 a barrel in late April, while Aramco shares peaked at 27.96 riyals in May. The stock subsequently declined as hostilities eased and oil prices fell below $80 in June and early July.
The conflict has since moved closer to Saudi Arabia. Drone attacks in September took the kingdom’s East-West Pipeline offline for roughly two weeks before operations resumed. Saudi Arabia has also been diverting some crude back toward Hormuz.
