Is the Gulf IPO boom running out of steam? Two IPO prospects for the Saudi stock exchange are delaying their plans, Bloomberg reported last week:

#1- ADES: Regional oil and gas services company ADES International has pushed its IPO to the second half of the year, the news outlet reported, citing people familiar with the matter. The Public Investment Fund-backed firm was planning to begin assessing investor demand in March but has chosen to delay the process, the people said, adding that the company wants to time the sale right. The company — which started life in Egypt and is currently the country’s largest offshore driller — hopes to raise USD 1 bn from the sale. The PIF helped take ADES private in 2021 in a transaction that valued it at USD 516 mn.

#2- Aramco Trading:Saudi Aramco’s energy trading business likely won’t be going public until next year after the company postponed the IPO due to market conditions, according to Bloomberg, which cites informed sources. Valuing the firm at more than USD 30 bn, the IPO was expected to be one of the world’s largest this year, and the company now has doubts about whether it is possible to go ahead with a listing of this size during current conditions, according to the news outlet’s sources.

What’s going on? The decline in oil prices is sucking the momentum out of the boom in listings seen in the Gulf last year. The Tadawul is down 16% from its high last year as fears of recession hit oil prices. As a result, money raised from IPOs in the Gulf is down almost 70% from the same period last year, according to Bloomberg data, while the USD 72 mn raised in Saudi Arabia is the lowest year-to-date total since 2014.

ALSO WORTH NOTING:

  • The Middle East’s second SPAC could be in the works:MEASA Partners, an investment company backed by Abu Dhabi’s Al Maskari family, is reportedly planning to launch this year the Middle East’s second SPAC listing, the first since ADQ and Chimera Investments’ blank-check firm went public in April 2022, sources familiar with the matter told Bloomberg.
  • Twitter has a new CEO: Elon Musk has appointed advertising veteran Linda Yaccarino as Twitter’s new CEO, removing himself from the position he gave himself following his USD 44 bn takeover of the company last year. (Elon Musk)
  • UK interest rates at 15-year high: The Bank of England on Thursday raised its main interest rate by 25 bps to 4.5%, its highest level since late 2008. (Bank of England)
  • PwC on firefighting mission amid Aussie tax scandal: Global execs PwC flew to Sydney last week after it emerged the Big Four firm had provided tax avoidance advice to clients using secret government tax plans. (FT)
  • Binance bails on Canada: Binance, the world’s largest crypto trading platform, on Friday announced its plans to shut down its operations in Canada as the country tightens regulations on the industry. (Binance)

EGX30

17,271

-1.3% (YTD: +18.3%)

USD (CBE)

Buy 30.84

Sell 30.96

USD at CIB

Buy 30.85

Sell 30.95

Interest rates CBE

18.25% deposit

19.25% lending

Tadawul

11,393

+0.9% (YTD: +8.7%)

ADX

9,635

-0.4% (YTD: -5.6%)

DFM

3,559

-0.3% (YTD: +6.7%)

S&P 500

4,124

-0.2% (YTD: +7.4%)

FTSE 100

7,755

+0.3% (YTD: +4.1%)

Euro Stoxx 50

4,318

+0.2% (YTD: +13.8%)

Brent crude

USD 74.17

-1.1%

Natural gas (Nymex)

USD 2.27

+3.5%

Gold

USD 2,019.80

0.0%

BTC

USD 26,921

+1.8% (YTD: +62.3%)

THE CLOSING BELL-

The EGX30 fell 1.3% at Thursday’s close on turnover of EGP 2.11 bn. Foreign investors were net sellers. The index is up 18.3% YTD.

In the green: Cleopatra Hospitals (+4.3%), Credit Agricole Egypt (+2.8%) and Rameda Pharma (+2.3%).

In the red: E-finance (-2.9%), Sidi Kerir Petrochemicals (-1.1%) and Elsewedy Electric (-2.3%).

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