Saudi Aramco shares rose on Sunday, the first trading day following a secondary share offering estimated to garner at least $11.2 billion.
The shares opened at 27.95 riyals per share, having closed the previous session on Thursday at 28.3 riyals, but had risen to 28.35 riyals by 0730 GMT. The ultimate price for the secondary share sale was 27.25 riyals, which was at the lower end of the price range.
Saudi Arabia sold more over half of Aramco’s shares to international investors, according to two people familiar with the situation. One of them stated that many orders had come in from the United States, the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, and Japan.
The world’s largest oil exporter has been attempting to entice overseas investors to deposit tens of billions of dollars into projects to diversify away from its dependency on oil. Nonetheless, foreign investment has consistently underperformed targets.
image credit: Aramco
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, is sponsoring projects ranging from electric automobiles to the construction of futuristic desert communities through the Public Investment Fund (PIF).
After pulling back several of its big giga-projects, the $925 billion sovereign fund intends to concentrate its focus in order to carry the goal forward.
According to insiders and analysts, the proceeds from the share sale will most likely be directed to the PIF, though funds may also be used to help fill the kingdom’s budget shortfall, which has grown as the price of oil has fallen.
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