Saudi markets rise as oil supply disruption eases

Saudi Arabian markets rose in early trade on Wednesday as oil supply fears eased after Riyadh said oil production lost as a result of weekend attacks on two Aramco plants would be restored by the end of September.

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi group said it had attacked the plants, at the heart of Saudi Arabia’s oil industry on Saturday, knocking out about 5 percent of global supply.

Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said on Tuesday that average oil production in September and October would be 9.89 million barrels per day and that the world’s top oil exporter would ensure full oil supply commitments to its customers this month.

The Saudi stock index was up 0.5 percent on Wednesday, led by a 1 percent rise in Al Rajhi Bank and buoyed by gains in petrochemical makers after they announced improvements in supply from Saudi Aramco.

Aramco’s CEO said the state-run oil giant was able to supply the local market and would compensate local refineries with additional feed in the next couple of days.

Saudi Basic Industries (SABIC) and Advanced Petrochemical climbed 1 percent and 2.5 percent respectively.

In Dubai, the index edged up 0.2 percent helped by gains in property stocks. Blue-chip developer Emaar Properties rose 0.6 percent, while DAMAC properties gained 0.8 percent.

Earlier this month, Dubai set up a real estate planning commission to regulate projects and avoid competition between semi-government and private firms, moving to address a downturn in the real estate sector, where prices have contracted by 25-35 percent since their mid-2014 peak.

In Qatar, the index was up 0.1 percent with Qatar Islamic Bank increasing 1.4 percent and Qatar Navigation advancing 2.8 percent.

Abu Dhabi index traded 0.1 percent lower, with Emirates Telecommunications Group shedding 0.4 percent and First Abu Dhabi Bank down 0.1 percent.

Source: Reuters