Saudi's Annual Property Prices Climb in Q2; Issued Building Permits Drop in May

Annual real estate prices in Saudi Arabia climbed 1.3% year over year in the second quarter, while the kingdom's issued building permits fell in May, according to economic data published Monday.

Data from the country's General Authority for Statistics showed the price appreciation was attributed to a 2.6% increase in residential sector prices and an 11.3% jump in the agricultural industry, contrasted with a 3.2% annual decline in commercial sector prices.

Quarter-on-quarter, Saudi's real estate price index rose 3% versus a 0.2% dip in the previous three-month period.

The growth was driven by a 3.7% price hike in the residential sector, a 1% gain in the commercial industry, and a 1.3% increase in the agricultural segment.

In a separate same-day release, the General Authority for Statistics also reported a 33.3% year-over-year plunge in issued building permits in May, reversing a 28.2% surge the previous month.

Month over month, the kingdom's issued building permits decreased to 5,056 from April's 6,803.

HDFC Bank's Fiscal First-Quarter Profit Rises 5% Despite Margin Pressures

HDFC Bank (NSE:HDFCBANK, BOM:500180) reported a 5% increase in net profit for the fiscal first quarter ended June 30 to 190.60 billion rupees from 181.55 billion rupees a year earlier.Earnings per share rose to 12.35 rupees from 11.79 rupees, according to filings with the Indian bourses on Saturday.Net revenue for the quarter, however, shrank to 463.6 billion rupees from 531.7 billion rupees. The year-ago figure included 91.3 billion rupees in transaction gains from the IPO of its subsidiary, HDB Financial Services (NSE:HDBFS, BOM:544429), HDFC said.Net interest income in the latest reporting period edged up 6.7% to 335.3 billion rupees. Net interest margin shrank to 3.26% on total assets from 3.4% a year prior.On the earnings call, CEO Sashidhar Jagdishan said the lender faced "certain challenges over the last four months."CFO Srinivasan Vaidyanathan told analysts that the bank does not expect net interest margins to improve quickly, citing the country's liquidity scenario and the elevated costs of non-retail deposits."Non-retail deposit costs have been elevated. And similarly, the borrowing mix has not come off yet. We still remain at about 11%. That continues to be a space that we keep watching. But again, it doesn't change in the short term and doesn't change in a hurry," Vaidyanathan said.During the call, Deputy Managing Director Kaizad Bharucha said the bank had disbursed close to 140 billion rupees under the government's Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) 5.0 scheme as of June 30."I believe that's amongst the highest in terms of the participating banks because of the spread of customers and the quality of the portfolio that we have out over there," Bharucha said.

BOM:500180BOM:544429NSE:HDBFSNSE:HDFCBANK

Update: Equities Fall Amid Netflix Sell-Off; Oil Climbs as Middle East Tensions Rise

(Updates with market moves at the end of the day and weekly index changes.)US equities declined Friday as Netflix (NFLX) shares sold off, capping a losing week for Wall Street amid renewed tensions in the Middle East that drove oil prices higher.The Nasdaq Composite shed 1.4% to close at 25,520.24, while the S&P 500 dropped 1% to 7,457.69. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.8% to settle at 52.146.42. Barring energy, all sectors ended in the red, led by communication services.Netflix (NFLX) shares slumped 7.3% Friday, among the worst performers on the S&P 500. The steaming giant's move to annual engagement reporting and its soft US and Canada revenue in the second quarter apparently weighed on the stock, BofA Securities said in a note.Netflix's June-quarter revenue fell short of Wall Street's estimate, results released late Tuesday showed.West Texas Intermediate crude oil was up 4% at $82.14 a barrel in Friday late-afternoon trade, while Brent rose 4.3% to $87.82. The WTI was headed for its biggest weekly gain since early March, while Brent was on track for its steepest weekly rise since mid-April.Iran has hit Jordan, Kuwait and Qatar, while Tehran also claimed it targeted US military assets in Oman and Bahrain, CNN reported Friday."Energy and refined fuel flows through the Strait of Hormuz continues to slow amid the escalating conflict between the US and Iran," Saxo Bank said in a report. "The renewed disruption has interrupted the recent recovery in regional supply, reviving concerns about tighter global markets."US Treasury yields were mixed, with the two-year rate up 2.7 basis points at 4.18% and the 10-year rate falling 1.8 basis points to 4.55%.This week, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 fell 2.9% and 1.6%, respectively, following their two consecutive weekly gains. The Dow dipped 0.9% to log its second straight weekly decline."Beyond concerns about the latest flare-up in oil, arguably the bigger concern for policymakers is the inflationary impact of the boom in (artificial intelligence) spending," Douglas Porter, chief economist at BMO Financial Group, said in a report Friday.In other corporate news, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) shares sank 14% Friday, the steepest decline on the S&P 500. Growth in the company's da Vinci robotic surgery procedures in the US moderated due in part to changes in Affordable Care Act premium subsidies, even as it reported better-than-expected quarterly results late Thursday.SpaceX (SPCX) share fell 5.4%. The company's Starship rocket triggered an "automatic launch abort," with the next launch to be rescheduled possibly in a few days, SpaceX Chief Executive Elon Musk said in a Thursday post on X.Travelers (TRV) shares jumped 9.2%, the top gainer on the S&P 500 and the Dow. The property and casualty insurer's second-quarter earnings unexpectedly increased year over year, while its written premiums came in ahead of market estimates.In economic news, US consumer sentiment this month hit its highest level since February amid easing price pressures at the pump, though renewed tensions in the Middle East could weigh on confidence going forward, according to a survey by the University of Michigan.US housing starts increased more than expected last month amid a sharp jump in multi-family projects, government data showed.Gold was up 0.7% to $4,020.50 per troy ounce, while silver gained 0.5% to $56.44 per ounce.

Dow JonesNasdaq CompositeS&P 500$ISRG$NFLX$SPCX$TRV

Lodging Sector Set For Second-Quarter Beats Amid US RevPAR Acceleration, Morgan Stanley Says

Most lodging companies are poised to report second-quarter results above Wall Street's projections, as growth in revenue per available room in the US likely accelerated sequentially, Morgan Stanley said in a Friday report.Year-over-year growth in US revPAR -- a key performance indicator in the hospitality industry -- is estimated to have picked up by more than 200 basis points to about 5.5% in the second quarter from the prior three-month period, Morgan Stanley said.US revPAR benefitted from the FIFA World Cup, which bolstered June, while the industry began lapping the "Liberation Day," when President Donald Trump imposed sweeping tariffs in April 2025, the brokerage said. "Accelerating US trends should outweigh weaker China and Middle East pressures, leading to upside in the (quarter)," Morgan Stanley said.The investment firm expects sector-wide upward revisions to full-year 2026 guidance.Morgan Stanley revised its price targets higher for several lodging companies ahead of the release of second-quarter results, including overweight-rated names such as Wyndham Hotels & Resorts (WH), Hyatt Hotels (H), and Travel & Leisure (TNL).Price targets moved to $93 from $89 for Wyndham, to $218 from $208 for Hyatt and to $83 from $78 for Travel & Leisure.The brokerage also raised its price targets on Hilton Worldwide (HLT), Marriott International (MAR), DiamondRock Hospitality (DRH), Pebblebrook Hotel Trust (PEB) and Park Hotels & Resort (PK), among others.Price: $12.49, Change: $+0.21, Percent Change: +1.67%

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