Aramco’s Long-Awaited IPO May Be Kryptonite to Saudi Stocks

  • Share offering may crowd out the kingdom’s equity market
  • Company may sell a 1% stake through a listing on Saudi bourse

The Saudi Stock Exchange, also known as the Tadawul, in Riyadh.

Photographer: Abdulrahman Abdullah/Bloomberg
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It’s been at least three years in the making, but it’s just dawned on investors what a share sale by Saudi Aramco would do to the Arab world’s biggest stock exchange.

The Tadawul All Share Index almost wiped out this year’s gains after the kingdom picked banks for the sale, spurring market players to realize the initial public offering really is happening. The energy giant could list as soon as NovemberBloomberg Terminal, a person with knowledge of the matter said.