By: Mahmoud Gamal
Mubasher: The Gulf stock markets are likely to see fluctuations on Monday, as investors are still awaiting the oil prices and global stocks to see a clear trend.
Global stocks ended last week on a positive note, while the Brent crude benchmark for November delivery exceeded the level of $49 per barrel.
Volatility still controls the Gulf stocks as investors are awaiting the oil prices to see a clear trend, according to Ahed Soudani, financial analyst at Ingot Brokers.
The fall of Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul), as a result of the austerity measures taken by the Kingdom, will negatively affect portfolio investors’ sentiment in Monday’s trading session, the analyst said.
Tadawul slid to its lowest level since March 2011, amid fears that the government could introduce more austerity measures to curb a big budget deficit caused by low oil prices.
Some investors expected that the Saudi Cabinet may approve, in their weekly meeting on Monday, additional austerity steps that include imposing new fees or taxes on the kingdom’s large workforce of foreigners.
The US Congress’s vote last week to allow relatives of victims of the September 11 attacks to sue Saudi Arabia had a negative impact on the market sentiment in Riyadh, Soudani noted.
The Gulf bourse are likely to continue their volatility in the coming period till the disclosure of third-quarter financials, as well as the announcement of the new US President which will mark a turning point in the local and global economies, technical analyst Ibrahim Al-Failakawi explained.
Translated by: Julian Nabil
