(Bloomberg) –Saudi stocks opened higher as investors digested the kingdom’s plan to sell a 1.5% stake in the state-owned oil producer.
Al Rajhi Bank and National Commercial Bank led the gains, rising 0.7% and 1%, respectively, as the Tadawul All Share Index advanced as much as 0.4%. It was up 0.2% as of 10:06 a.m. in Riyadh.
In an updated prospectus published on Sunday, Saudi Aramco, the world’s most profitable company, said it will offer shares in a range of 30 to 32 Saudi riyals, for a valuation of as much as $1.71 trillion. While that may raise as much as $25.6 billion in what would be the world’s biggest initial public offering, the final size of the stake is below some analysts’ forecasts, providing a relief for investors concerned the sale would drain funds from other securities.
Read: Aramco’s IPO could entice Saudi individuals back to local bourse
Though some analysts were expecting a bigger deal and a lower valuation, there’s “some excitement” as Aramco is a meaningful company for almost all Saudi investors, said Joice Mathew, head of equity research at United Securities in Muscat, Oman.
Elsewhere in the region, equity indexes were mixed, with those in Dubai, Bahrain and Oman rising as much as 0.5% while gauges in Abu Dhabi, Kuwait and Qatar declined as much as 0.8%.
