Saudi oil giant Aramco starts trading shares a week after historic IPO
The Saudi Arabian Oil Company, the most profitable commercial enterprise in the world, started trading shares on Wednesday, a week after its long-awaited listing on the Saudi Arabian stock exchange broke the record as the largest initial public offering (IPO) in history.
The company, known as Aramco and frequently dubbed the "crown jewel" of Saudi Arabia, was partially privatized as part of a campaign by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to wean the kingdom off its dependence on oil.
Since becoming the heir to the crown in 2017, Mohammed has emphasized the importance of economic diversification in the conservative kingdom. Global fears regarding climate change and worries about the use of fossil fuels has played a part in Saudi Arabia selling a stake in Aramco, which was the world's most profitable company last year, followed by Apple and Industrial & Commercial Bank of China.
Last week's IPO stood at $1.7 trillion, making Aramco the most valuable listed company in the world, but fell short of the $2 trillion valuation aimed for by Mohammed. The company floated 1.5 percent of its stake on the Riyadh stock exchange, or Tadawul.
Initially priced at 32 riyals ($8.53), shares rose the maximum 10 percent to 35.2 riyals on Wednesday, giving Aramco a market value of around $1.88 trillion, Reuters reported, surpassing Apple who made history when it became the first $1 trillion publicly traded company.
More than 80 percent of the stake sale was bought by Saudi buyers, Reuters reported, following lukewarm interest from international investors. Saudi Arabia was shunned by some financial institutions for a brief period of time following the brutal murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, who was killed in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul as a result of his criticism of Mohammed.
