PARIS, France - Saudi Arabia is considering setting up a new metals and mining stock exchange index as it looks to expand its resources sector to diversify away from hydrocarbons, a senior government official said on Friday.
Mining Minister Bandar bin Ibrahim al - Khorayef told Reuters in an interview in Sydney that his team met with Australian counterparts to learn more about a mining index, similar to Australia's ASX 300 Metals & Mining (XMM) sub-index (AXMM) that lists metals and mining firms including producers of gold, steel, and precious metals.
''It is something we are studying..but we have not made up our mind if would be successful'', Al - Khorayed told Reuters.
''We have a secondary stock market in Saudi...its still evolving. We want to see if its better to have something for mining'', he said.
He did not say how many companies would potentially be included in the index.
Saudi Arabia's stock exchange consists of the Tadawul main market and a parallel market that companies can join with fewer reporting requirements.
Riyadh's efforts to build an economy that is not dependent on oil include a shift towards mining to explore the country's untapped reserves of resources from copper to phosphate and gold.
The minister is at the International Mining and Resources Conference in Sydney this week to drum up investment interest. He said on Wednesday that the kingdom plans to award over a dozen mining exploration licences to international investors.
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