Riyadh: Saudi Arabian shares advanced 0.1 per cent at the start of the week, led by Riyad Bank and Al-Rajhi Bank, as the price of crude oil rose.
Southern Province Cement Co., the largest cement producer in Saudi Arabia, increased to the highest level since 2008. Easter Province Cement, the maker of building materials gained the most in more than two months. The Tadawul All Share Index rose to 6,473.05.
Crude oil rose after a report showed the US economy grew at a 5.9 per cent annual rate in the fourth quarter, signalling that fuel demand may climb in the world's biggest energy-consuming country. Oil increased 1.9 per cent to $79.66 (Dh292.98) after the Commerce Department said gross domestic product gained by the most in six years. The growth rate was higher than the government reported last month. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said this week that the US economy is in a "nascent" recovery.
Emerging markets
Emerging-markets stocks rose the most in two weeks on evidence of a sustained global economic expansion. The MSCI Emerging Market Index of stocks increased 1.4 per cent to 935.93, the most since February 9. India's Sensex Index climbed to the highest in three weeks after Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said the economy may grow at a 10 per cent pace in the "not-too-distant future."
Turkey's ISE 100 Index gained for the first time this week.
