7 things you need to know before Tadawul opens

Here’s what you need to know before the opening bell rings at the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul) on Thursday.

1) Oil prices continued to climb on Thursday after settling near an 11-month high a day earlier. Futures were boosted by supply disruptions in Nigeria and a recent decline in US inventories. Brent crude last traded 0.4 percent higher at $52.70/bbl.

2) Saudi Arabia plans to issue sukuk for its real estate development fund by the end of 2017, the kingdom’s housing minister Majed Al Hogail said Wednesday at a news conference. He added that the white land tax regulations will be issued within the next two weeks.

3) The Saudi government is considering taxing millions of foreign expat employees in the kingdom as it seeks to raise non-oil revenue and shore up its finances. The proposed measure is part of a new economic reform plan unveiled earlier this week.

4) L’Azurde’s initial public offering (IPO) was 79.56 percent subscribed by the end of its third day on Tuesday. The retail tranche, which began on June 5, is set to end on June 13.

5) Al Jazira Bank has renewed real estate financing group insurance agreement with its affiliate, Al Jazira Takaful Taawuni Co. The one-year contract starts from June 2, 2016 and is valued at SAR 14 million.

6) Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC) is ready to become a publicly traded holding company, SWCC governor Abdulrahman Al Ibrahim said on the sidelines of a board meeting.

7) National Gas and Industrialization Co. (GASCO) has appointed Aiman Monshi as the company’s new chief executive, effective Wednesday, June 8. He replaces Ayas Al Hajri, who resigned due to personal reasons.