Tadawul Equities End Monday Lower Despite Positive September Non-oil PMI, Sliding Oil Prices

08:30 AM EDT, 10/05/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Saudi equities remained under slight pressure on Monday, with the Tadawul All Share Index closing 0.34% in the red, despite encouraging non-oil private sector performance for September and declining oil prices. Saudi Arabia's Purchasing Managers' Index for the non-oil private sector posted an increase for the sixth straight month in September, according to a report by Riyad Bank. The index rose to 55.3 from 53.8 in the previous month. "Survey respondents cited higher client numbers and a growing volume of pending projects as key drivers of sales growth. Businesses also stepped up hiring, expanding sales and technical teams to support new investments and rising workloads. However, delivery times lengthened at the fastest pace in five months as supply chain disruptions persisted amid geopolitical uncertainty," the report states. Oil prices slid after the G7 decided on Friday to release 100 million barrels of oil from reserves. "Oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz appear to be trending higher. G7 nations have agreed to release 100m barrels of oil, including diesel, while oil flows along Saudi's East-West pipeline continue to recover," ING said. "Further reinforcing expectations of looser crude oil market conditions, Saudi Arabia reduced the official selling price for November-loading Arab Light crude into Asia by $3/bbl, widening its discount to the benchmark to $5/bbl. The Saudis have been shipping larger volumes through the Strait of Hormuz in recent weeks, given the outage of the East-West pipeline." On the geopolitical front, the Saudi-backed Yemeni government launched a major offensive against Houthis to reclaim the captured area, Reuters reported, citing Yemeni President Rashad al-Alimi's televised address. Houthis, on the other hand, claimed they struck Saudi Arabian Oil Co.'s (SASE:2222), d/b/a Saudi Aramco, facilities in Riyadh and the Khurais area. However, Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed sources, that the oil major's East-West crude oil pipeline is operating as usual. Back at home, United Securities LLC started coverage of The Saudi Investment Bank (SASE:1030) with a hold rating and a price target of 15.90 Saudi riyals. In a Sunday research report, analysts highlighted the Saudi lender's corporate banking segment, which they expect to continue driving earnings growth going forward. The lender's shares closed 1.32% lower.