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BUSINESS Thursday 12 december 2019
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Saudi Aramco starts trading, gaining 10% and reaching $1.8T

By AYA BATRAWY at a celebration at the
Associated Press Fairmont hotel in Riyadh,
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia Aramco Chairman Yasir Al-
(AP) — Saudi Arabia’s oil Rumayyan, described the
company Aramco began sale as “a proud and histor-
trading for the first time on ic moment for Saudi Aram-
Wednesday, gaining 10% co and our majority share-
in its first moments on the holder, the kingdom.” He
market in a dramatic de- said it demonstrates further
but that pushed its value significant progress toward
to $1.88 trillion, higher than Saudi Arabia’s transforma-
any other listed company tion, economic growth
in the world. and diversification.
Trading on the Saudi Aramco, which has exclu-
Tadawul stock exchange sive rights to produce and
came after a mammoth sell the kingdom’s energy
$25.6 billion initial public of- reserves, was founded in
fering that set the record 1933 with America’s Stan-
as the biggest ever in his- dard Oil Co. before be-
tory. coming fully owned by
Aramco, owned by the Saudi Arabia four decades
state, has sold a 1.5% stake ago.
in the company, pricing its Strong demand for Aram-
shares before trading at This Sept. 15, 2019 file photo, shows storage tanks at the North Jiddah bulk plant, an Aramco oil co’s stock has so far been
32 Saudi riyals, or what is facility, in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia. mostly drawn from Saudi
$8.53. Associated Press funds, rather than the wid-
At pre-trading auction ear- er net of international in-
lier in the morning, bids for most of which are Saudi the sale of up to 5% of the dean at Warwick Business vestors the crown prince’s
Aramco reached the 10% and Gulf-based funds. company - on an interna- School in the U.K. economic diversification
limit on stock price fluctua- The retail portion was lim- tional stock exchange as He said the surging price plan may need to suc-
tion allowed by Tadawul. ited to Saudi citizens, resi- well as the Saudi market on launch suggests that ceed.
That pushed the price of dents of Saudi Arabia or - that could raise $100 bil- buying may be from those While the sale of Aramco
Aramco shares in its de- nationals of Gulf Arab lion. affiliated to the crown is a step toward raising
but to 35.2 riyals, or $9.39 a states. Instead, potential buy- prince. new streams of capital for
share. Saudi Crown Prince Mo- ers outside Saudi Arabia In the lead up to the flo- the government’s Pub-
Aramco is now the most hammed bin Salman plans thought his $2 trillion valua- tation, there had been a lic Investment Fund, it is
valuable listed company in to use the money raised tion was too high. With the strong push for Saudis, in- only part of a much larger
the world, worth more than from the sale of a sliver of gains made on Tadawul cluding princes and busi- transformation needed to
Microsoft or Apple. It’s also the kingdom’s crown jewel and a strong local push, nessmen, to contribute to move the economy away
worth more than the top to diversify the country’s the company moves clos- what’s seen locally as a from reliance on oil exports
five oil companies -- Exxon economy and fund ma- er to clinching that $2 tril- moment of national pride, for revenue.
Mobil, Total, Royal Dutch jor national projects that lion mark without even list- and even duty. Zachary Cefaratti, chief
Shell, Chevron and BP — create jobs for millions of ing internationally. A brief ceremony on the executive officer of Dalma
combined. young Saudis entering the “They have had to launch exchange floor as trad- Capital which invested in
Aramco is selling 0.5% of its workforce. the IPO on their own stock ing started on Wednesday Aramco through funds,
shares to individual retail What the 34-year-old exchange as the valu- saw a countdown in Ara- said he anticipates the
investors — most of whom crown prince had initially ation was unlikely to be bic, the sounding of a bell, company will soon be-
are Saudi nationals — and sought was a $2 trillion achieved elsewhere,” said a light show with music and come the first in the world
1% to institutional investors, valuation for Aramco and John Colley, associate applause all around. Later, valued at over $2 trillion. q