Saudi Aramco Shares to Start Trading Dec. 11

Saudi Aramco shares will start trading on Dec. 11, the Saudi securities exchange Tadawul said in a statement on Friday.

Saudi Arabia's state oil giant priced its initial public offering at 32 riyals ($8.53) per share on Thursday, raising $25.6 billion and beating Alibaba Group Holding Ltd's record $25 billion listing in 2014.

The Aramco IPO was launched to raise funds to help diversify the kingdom away from reliance on oil and create jobs for a growing population.

Aramco shares will trade using the symbol 2222 and will have a daily 10% plus or minus fluctuation limit, Tadawul said on its website.

"On the first day of trading only, the opening auction for the Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco) will be extended for 30 minutes," it added.

(Reporting by Maher Chmaytelli; Editing by Jon Boyle and Edmund Blair)