Abu Dhabi wants to lure hedge funds and other grand wizards of high finance with a lifestyle program that includes country club memberships and other perks that will eventually make it competitive for talent with New York, London, Hong Kong, and Singapore, Bloomberg writes.

The pitch: Easier visas and “lifestyle support” will, “along with the city’s no-tax status, sunny weather and a time zone that allows workers to trade across Asian, European and US hours, … help it continue to lure hedge fund titans from New York, London, Hong Kong and Singapore.”

The competition: Dubai, which is less attractive to some right now in part thanks to the fact that “waiting lists for schools and social clubs in the city run long; reservations at some restaurants can take weeks, and key roads are routinely jammed,” it writes.

Is Saudi competitive? Not yet, but the big obstacle isn’t Riyadh’s crazy commute, and the recently announced premium residency program will be a big shot in the arm. Instead, the primary issue here is at the intersection of perception and regulation. Relatively few finance firms will be willing to relocate money managers to King Abdullah Financial District unless it is made a DFM- or ADGM-style business zone with its own legal and regulatory framework enforced by a standalone regulator and an on-site court and arbitration center.

THE MARKET THIS MORNING-

Asian markets are solidly in the red this morning, with traders sitting tight ahead of interestrate decisions later today from Australia and after the Bank of Japan hiked interest rates for the first time in 17 years. European and US stock futures all slid overnight, suggesting that key Wall Street and continental benchmarks will follow suit later today.

TASI

12,773

+0.1% (YTD: +6.7%)

MSCI Tadawul 30

1,607

+0.1% (YTD: +3.6%)

NomuC

27,205

-0.3% (YTD: +10.9%)

USD : SAR (SAMA)

3.75 Sell

3.75 Buy

Interest rates

6% repo

5.5% reverse repo

EGX30

29,091

-6.3% (YTD: +16.9%)

ADX

9,289

+0.7% (YTD: -3%)

DFM

4,275

+0.3% (YTD: +5.3%)

S&P 500

5,149

+0.6% (YTD: +8%)

FTSE 100

7,723

-0.1% (YTD: -0.1%)

Euro Stoxx 50

4,983

-0.1% (YTD: +10.2%)

Brent crude

USD 86.89

+1.8%

Natural gas (Nymex)

USD 1.70

+2.9%

Gold

USD 2,164.30

+0.1%

BTC

USD 67,561

-1.3% (YTD: +142.9%)

THE CLOSING BELL: TADAWUL-

The TASI rose 0.1% yesterday on turnover of SAR 11.1 bn. The index is up 6.7% YTD.

In the green: SICO Saudi REIT (+10%), Saudi Industrial Development (+9.9%) and Zamil Industrial (+7.3%).

In the red: Saudi Steel Pipe (-10%), Saudi Paper Manufacturing (-7.6%) and Enaya (-6.5%).

THE CLOSING BELL: NOMU-

The NomuC fell 0.3% yesterday on turnover of SAR 26.2 mn. The index is up 10.9% YTD.

In the green: Mulkia (+16.2%), United Mining (+16%) and AlBabtain Food (+6.4%).

In the red: Lana (-6.6%), Watani Steel (-6.2%) and Rawasi (-4.9%)

CORPORATE ACTIONS-

#1- The Capital Market Authority (CMA) has approved Bank Aljazira’s request to hike its capital by 25% to SAR 10.3 bn through a bonus issue, it said in a statement yesterday. It will be paid by transferring SAR 2.1 bn from the statutory reserve to the bank’s capital, raising outstanding shares to 1.02 bn shares.

#2- Thimar Development has submitted an application to the CMA to lower its capital by SAR 185 mn to SAR 65 mn, it said in a disclosure to Tadawul yesterday.

#3- Salama Cooperative Ins. BoD has recommended hiking its capital to SAR 300 mnthrough a rights issue of SAR 100 mn, it said in a disclosure to Tadawul. The capital increase aims to comply with the Ins. Authority’s minimum capital requirements within a specified timeframe.

#4- Zoujaj’s BoD has declared a dividend payout of SAR 16.5 mn at SAR 0.5 apiece for 2H 2023, the glass maker said in a disclosure to Tadawul yesterday. The distribution date was set on 27 May.

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