TASI extended its monthly gains to October, closing the month up 1.3% to 11.7k points. The rise narrows its YTD loss to 3.2%, according to Kamco Invest’s GCC Markets Monthly report (pdf). This marks Tadawul’s second month in a row to close in the green.

The benchmark’s total market cap hit SAR 9.67 tn by the end of October, with SAR 122.3 bn in value traded across 5.9 bn securities and 10.4 mn trades.

Some 11 out of 21 sectors on Tadawul ended October in the green, led by utilities (+10.9%), consumer discretionary distribution & retail (+8.7%), and energy (+5.4%), according to Kamco Invest’s report. Materials (-1.0%) and banks (-0.6%) were among the laggards.

Gainers and Laggards: Sasco (+27.2%), Aldrees Petroleum (+22.4%), and Petro Rabigh (+21.8%) were among the top gainers on the Tadawul in October, while Naseej (-35.4%), United Cooperative Assurance (-17.6%), and Cenomi Retail (-15.1%) led the decliners.

Most active by value: Al Rajhi Bank (SAR 8.7 bn), Aramco (SAR 7 bn) and Alinma Bank (SAR 3.9 bn) were the most actively traded stocks by value.

IN CONTEXT- The modest gain follows a stellar September, when TASI jumped 7.5% to 11.5k after the CMA signaled plans to lift the 49% foreign-ownership cap on listed firms spurring heavy overseas buying and the gauge’s sharpest one-day surge since 2020. The Kingdom has been ramping up its push to attract foreign capital with a number of market reforms, introducing draft regs that grant all foreigners direct access to Saudi stocks.

ELSEWHERE IN THE REGION- GCC equities rose for the second month in a row, with the MSCI GCC climbing 1.2%. The FTSE ADX and the DFM both broke their two-month losing streak in October, up 0.9% and 3.8%. Egypt’s EGX30 outperformed both the UAE, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia, climbing 4.4% in October. Meanwhile, Oman was up 8.3% last month, while Bahrain was up 5.9% and Kuwait was up 2.7%.

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