Saudi Arabia calls off stock listing for Aramco oil giant

Oil industry sources reported Thursday that Saudi Arabia had withdrawn its domestic and international stock listing for the state oil giant Aramco, causing upheaval in oil and stock markets. This is not so far officially confirmed. Meanwhile, the team of financial advisors working on the listing have been disbanded. DEBKAfile: The kingdom spent more than two years preparing the listing, in the course of which Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (MbS) conducted a highly publicized promotion tour in Washington and US financial centers. As part of his pitch for raising at least $2 trillion, the prince displayed his Vision 2030 plan for reforming the Saudi economy. Most experts found this expectation unrealistic. Financial and oil industry sources believe that MbS called off the stock listing in view of the recent uptick of oil prices to $70 barrels per day, which raised Saudi oil revenue by more than 20 percent.