Middle East: Discussion

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[url="http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110129/ap_on_bi_ge/ml_saudi_egypt_stocks_3"]Saudi exchange tumbles on Egypt protest[/url]

CAIRO – Saudi Arabia's stock exchange tumbled by over 6 percent on Saturday, setting the stage for other regional markets to drop as concerns mounted about the violent protests in Egypt.



The Tadawul All Shares Index fell 6.44 percent to close at 6,267 points. The market in Saudi Arabia, where the start of the work week is Saturday, was the first to react to the violence in Egypt and the drop in the TASI offered a window into the potential battering that could emerge when other regional markets reopen on Sunday.



"The fall is due to sentiment about what's happening in Egypt, and also in the US because the Dow went down" on Friday, said John Sfakianakis, chief economist at the Riyadh-based Banque Saudi Fransi-Credit Agricole Group.



"You have some collateral damage which is related to investors .... who have exposure in Egypt, and are trying to hedge that exposure by selling down their positions in Saudi Arabia," he said.