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HISTORY AND OVERVIEWThe All or None order refers to trading the entire volume. A Minimum Block consists of specifiedminimum volume for each trade, whereas a Minimum Fill order refers to the minimum volumethat must be available for trading to take place.Orders may also exist for one day, current week, and current month or up to 30 days.As of 31 December 2008, there were 32 brokerage firms operating on the exchange. Tradingcommissions charged by Tadawul are as follows.• The maximum commission is 0.0012 of the trade value executed by the bank. Thecustomer can negotiate a lower commission with the bank. This commission discount hasto be agreed and documented in advance• Minimum commission imposed is SR12 for any executed order equal or less thanSR10,000Tadawul provides investors with depository services as well. All trades are in the dematerializedform. The dematerialization of shares can be executed by banks, the depository itself, orthrough certificate data processing for portfolios. The electronic system facilitates pledging ofshares, settlement (T+ 0 days) and clearing of shares by ownership transfer. It is a real timesystem which immediately reflects the effects of any corporate action (such as stock split andbonus issues) on an investor’s portfolio. The cash transfer is done electronically via SAMA'sRTGS system – SRIE.Tadawul’s performance in 2008After the 2006 correction and the recovery in 2007, the Saudi stock market registered robustgrowth during the first half of 2008. Benefiting from the effects of escalating oil prices, thecompanies on TASI performed favorably. However, the second half of 2008 saw a sell-off,mirroring global trends triggered by the ongoing financial crisis that stoked fears of a recessionin the Saudi economy. The TASI index closed at a level of 4,802.9 points as on 31 December2008 (compared with 11,176 in December 2007), while the Tadawul’s market cap plunged fromaround USD513.5bn at the end of 2007 to USD246.5bn as on 31 December 2008.Exhibit 33: Saudi stock market - average daily value (USD mn)and average daily volume (mn)Exhibit 34: Saudi stock market – average daily transactions(‘000s)9,0003004008,0007,0006,0005,0004,0002502001503503002502003,0001001502,0001,000-5002003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Avg. daily valueAvg. daily volume (RHS) (mn)1005002003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008Source Bloomberg, TadawulSource Bloomberg, TadawulBoth average daily volume and average daily transactions declined in 2008. The daily averagevalue of shares traded on TASI fell by 24.2% y-o-y to SR7.8bn in 2008. Despite the challengingJUNE 2009SAUDI ARABIA FACTBOOK33