BSE Down to 957.367 Amid Global Business Challenges

This week, the BLOM Stock Index (BSI) compiled by BLOMInvest Bank on a daily basis slightly decreased by 0.93% to reach 957.357 on February 25, 2022. The Market capitalization on the Beirut Stock Exchange (BSE) witnessed a slight decrease from $9.90B to $9.84B. The average volume and value of trades also totaled 106,625 shares worth $277,097 compared to 55,589 shares worth $917,265 last week.

This week, talks on the draft budget plan include hiking customs duties and fees and other regressive policies, post to the exchange rate fall. As a result, cost of imports will increase along with higher inflationary rates. Moreover, a reform plan for the electricity sector is under review at a cost of $3.5 billion that is said to secure 24-hour power by 2026.

Regionally, the major Arab markets recorded a mixed performance this week amid the increase in oil prices. The S&P Pan Arab went up weekly by 0.09% to reach 88.29% while S&P AFE 40 index and the MSCI index dropped by 1.14% and 4.53% respectively. Moreover, the bourse of Kuwait and KSA were the top gainers this week and witnessed an increase by 3.25% and 0.02%, respectively.

In the Arab world, the UAE opened its long awaited ‘Museum of the Future’ on Tuesday, adding to the growing list of UAE’s attractions, encouraging further tourism in the country.

In KSA, this week Saudi Aramco has entered into an agreement with BlackRock to explore low-carbon energy projects by selling a stake in its natural-gas pipelines for $15.5 billion. This act is part of Saudi Arabia’s drive to fund new industries from artificial intelligence to electric vehicles, while also increasing output of both oil and gas.

On the Beirut Stock Exchange (BSE), the real estate sector grasped the lion’s share of the BSE’s trading value with a stake of 85.13%, while banking and industrial sectors grasped the rest with stakes of 10.40% and 3.46%, respectively. The most noteworthy trades throughout the mentioned period included:

• Solidere (B) shares increased by 0.03% to $30.17/share
• BLOM GDR retreated by 5.43% to $3.31/share
• Audi (GDR) increased by 1.60% to $1.90/share
• Byblos listed contracted by 2.41% to $0.81/share

As for the BLOM Preferred Shares Index (BPSI), it remains the same at 44.99 by the end of this week.

This week, the BSE followed a downtrend as Solidere stocks fluctuated. The stability in the exchange rate has paradoxically slowed activity on the BSE. As such, the market awaits new local components to bring back life to it.