Saudi Arabia: Last week, Saudi Arabia’s stock market wrapped up a positive trading week amid heightened investor sentiment, with the main index, TASI, trading above the 12,000 level for the first time in over 15 years.

At the latest session’s closing bell, TASI extended 4-day gains, up 1 percent to 12,079 points, and Nomu, the parallel market, edged up to 26,263 points.

Tadawul’s gains were in line with fellow GCC bourses, led by Kuwait’s BKP which was up 1.5 percent, and the Qatari index QSI, up 1.3 percent.

Abu Dhabi’s FTSE ADX General Index rose 0.7 percent, and Dubai’s DFMGI edged up by 0.2 percent. Stock indexes of Bahrain and Oman added 0.6 and 0.2 percent, respectively.

Elsewhere in the Middle East, the Egyptian index EGX30 saw marginal losses standing at 0.4 percent.

In energy trading, oil prices went up on Friday. Brent crude rose to $86 per barrel and US WTI crude oil reached $83.8 per barrel.

Stock news

Allied Cooperative Insurance Group’s rights issue trading was around 89 percent covered, the rump offering will start on Jan. 18

Saudi developer Knowledge Economic City has awarded a SR48.9 million ($13 million) construction contract to set up a bus station for its Madinah Gate Development

BinDawood Holding Co.’s board approved to establish a fully owned subsidiary for solutions and technical projects that will help capitalize on investments, with a capital of SR5 million

AXA Cooperative Insurance Co. appointed Khalid Abdulaziz Alshuwaier as chief executive officer effective today

International Co. for Water and Power Projects has changed its name to ACWA Power Co.