8 things to consider as Tadawul starts trading

Here are a few things you need to know as Saudi stocks start trading on Sunday.

1) Saudi Arabia’s King Salman has issued a series of royal decrees ordering payment of several allowances to state employees and military staff, along with exemption from value-added tax (VAT) for some citizens to offset rising cost of living, official state-run SPA reported.

2) Saudi Arabia’s cabinet has changed the status of Saudi Aramco into a joint-stock company as of Jan. 1, ahead of its planned initial public offering (IPO), according to the Kingdom’s official gazette.

3) Saudi Arabia arrested 11 princes on Saturday for staging a sit-in at a palace in Riyadh, objecting recently imposed austerity measures, the Kingdom’s information ministry said in a statement.

4) The Kingdom’s mobile operators have been directed to extend network coverage across the country’s rural areas within a maximum of 60 days.

5) Al Khaleej Training and Education Co. (Al Khaleej Training) has extended its memorandum of understanding (MoU) with ANB Invest until March 5. Signed on July 5 last year, the MoU and was to expire on January 5.

6) Dar Al-Arkan Real Estate Development has started construction works at I Love Florence Tower in Dubai. The Saudi-listed developer signed a contract with GFG Group to lay the necessary groundwork and start digging work for the project.

7) Saudi Arabia's oil exports to China will likely remain 'under pressure' for coming months, as the Kingdom grabs lion's share of ongoing OPEC, non-OPEC supply cuts, BMI Research said in a new report.

8) Crude oil prices closed last week with declines, easing from the two-year high reached earlier in the week. Brent crude was down 0.7 percent at $67.62/bbl, while WTI crude fell 0.9 percent to $61.44/bbl.

Write to Nadeshda Zareen at nadeshda.zareen@argaamplus.com