Riyadh – Mubasher: The benchmark index of the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul) ended February on a low note, after the Tadawul All Share Index (TASI) slid 3% or 231.3 points to close at 7,418.8 points.

TASI’s market capitalisation dropped SAR 46 billion ($12.3 billion) to close at SAR 1.746 trillion ($465.5 billion) compared to the previous month.

Moreover, turnover fell 17% month-on-month to SAR 67.8 trillion ($18.08 trillion) from SAR 81.97 trillion ($21.858 trillion), while traded volume dropped 30.7% to 3.07 trillion shares traded versus 4.4 trillion in January.

Twelve sectors ended in February in the red, led by real estate development with 8%, followed by investment with 7.5%.

On the positive side, eight sectors closed the month on a high note, led by consumer staples which surged 15.5% during the month, followed by media with 9.5%.

Leading sectors saw varied performance this month, as the telecom sector increased 0.54%, while the materials and banking sectors lost 2.5% and 3.6%, respectively.

Meanwhile, the parallel market NOMU index gained 5.08% or 152.6 points in February to close at 3,157.67 points.

Turnover on NOMU amounted to SAR 39.7 million after 1.8 million shares changed hands.