Qatar faces the most severe economic shock in the Gulf region, with its banking system under pressure; the sovereign wealth fund may become a key defense.

Correction: The IPO valuation in the first paragraph should be $5 billion, not 5 billion AUD. Maas shares once fell by 10.7%, hitting a five-month low. Firmus withdrew its listing application citing market volatility. Maas holds a 3.2% stake in Firmus and supplies equipment for its AI factory project. The subsidiary holds Firmus orders worth AUD 1.1 billion until fiscal year 2027. Kumar Tanishk/Rajasik Mukherjee, Reuters, October 9—On Friday, after Firmus, which is backed by Nvidia (NVDA.O), cancelled its $5 billion initial public offering (IPO) plan, shares of Maas Group’s (MGH.AX) closed down more than 6%. This raised concerns in the market about the value of its stake in the data center operator and the risks to its existing contracts. The cancellation deprived Maas of a potential market valuation and liquidity route for its 3.2% Firmus equity; it also shifted investors’ focus to JLE Group—an electrical infrastructure division of this Australian construction services provider. “The real risk is correlation. If Firmus faces financing issues, both MGH’s investment and JLE’s order volume could come under pressure,” said Hersh Oberoi, Global Head of Research at Balfour Capital Group. After trading was paused pending updates on Firmus’s IPO and related contracts, Maas shares resumed trading, dropping as much as 10.7% to a five-month low. Oberoi commented that the share price repricing was generally reasonable, since investors lost a potential upside in valuation rather than incurring actual cash losses. He added that the stake’s value should be benchmarked to its last private fundraising round, with adjustments for lack of liquidity. Firmus withdrew its listing application on Friday, citing market volatility and current conditions that “do not fairly reflect our business strength and long-term growth prospects.” JLE is set to deliver modular “Power Cubes” and related electrical engineering under orders valued around AUD 1.1 billion ($768.13 million) for fiscal years 2026 and 2027. Maas noted it has received AUD 373 million in payments, and expects completion before the end of 2027. IPO Withdrawal Triggers MAAS Share Revaluation A report on Thursday that Firmus was reconsidering the offer led Maas shares to slump 22.4%. The stock has fallen 32% over the past week, erasing nearly AUD 788 million in market capitalization. Firmus had previously planned to price its shares at AUD 11 apiece, valuing the equity at about AUD 30.6 billion—nearly three times its AUD 10.5 billion valuation in the August funding round. The withdrawn IPO would have been Australia’s second largest ever, underscoring investor caution toward highly valued, aggressively expanding, and capital-intensive AI infrastructure firms. ($1 = 1.4320 AUD)

Maas shares once fell by 10.7%, hitting a five-month low. Firmus withdrew its listing application, citing market volatility as the reason. Maas holds a 3.2% stake in Firmus and supports its artificial intelligence factory project. The subsidiary holds 1.1 billions AUD in Firmus orders through fiscal year 2027. Following analysts’ comments, Kumar Tanishk and Rajasik Mukherjee of Reuters reported on October 9 that on Friday, shares of Maas Group subsidiary MGH.AX closed down more than 6%. This followed Firmus, which is backed by Nvidia, cancelling its 5 billions AUD IPO, sparking market concerns about the value of Maas's stake in the data center operator and potential contract risk. The cancellation not only stripped Maas of a potential valuation benchmark and liquidity channel for its 3.2% equity in Firmus on the public markets, but also turned investors' attention to JLE Group—the electrical infrastructure business unit of the Australian construction services provider. “The real risk is correlation. If Firmus faces financing hurdles, both MGH’s investment and JLE’s order book could come under pressure,” said Hersh Oberoi, Global Head of Research at Balfour Capital Group. After trading was halted pending an update on Firmus’s IPO and related contracts, Maas shares resumed trading and fell by as much as 10.7%, touching a five-month low. Oberoi commented that the share price repricing was generally reasonable, as investors lost anticipated valuation gains rather than facing immediate cash losses; he added that the value of the stake should be referenced to its last private funding round, with adjustments for lack of liquidity. Firmus withdrew its listing application on Friday, stating that market volatility and current market conditions did not fairly reflect its business strength and long-term growth prospects. JLE is fulfilling orders totaling about 1.1 billions AUD (768.13 million USD), delivering modular “Power Cubes” and related electrical engineering in fiscal years 2026 and 2027. Maas said it has already received 373 million AUD in payments and expects the works to be completed by the end of 2027. The IPO withdrawal triggered Maas’s repricing. On Thursday, after reports that Firmus was reconsidering its offer, Maas shares plunged 22.4%. Over the past week, the stock has dropped by 32%, erasing nearly 788 million AUD in market capitalization. https://www.reuters.com/graphics/MAAS-SHARES/akvelnoxgpr/chart.png Firmus previously planned to price shares at 11 AUD, implying a company equity valuation of about 30.6 billions AUD—almost triple its 10.5 billions AUD valuation in its August funding round. The withdrawn IPO would have been Australia’s second largest ever, highlighting investors’ caution around highly valued, aggressive expansion, and capital-intensive AI infrastructure companies. (1 USD = 1.4320 AUD) (For convenience of non-English speakers, Reuters provides automated translations of its reports into several other languages. As automated translation may contain errors or lack necessary context, Reuters does not guarantee the accuracy of translated texts and provides them solely for readers’ convenience. Reuters is not liable for any loss or damage resulting from the use of automated translation.)

October 9 - RBC expects the performance of most European building material products to gradually improve quarter-on-quarter in Q3, but notes that geopolitical uncertainties in the US will continue to drive up cost inflation and increase market volatility. RBC anticipates that sales in Europe will remain sluggish due to heatwaves and rising mortgage rates, while a weak US housing market and the lack of a significant hurricane season will prompt roofing material companies to enter a destocking cycle. The firm is more optimistic about Germany’s Heidelberg Group (HEIG.DE), upgrading its rating to “outperform,” and points out that the company has handled the challenging quarter caused by extreme weather far better than its peers. Due to severe cost headwinds such as rising diesel and natural gas prices, RBC downgraded the ratings of US and French construction companies Knife River (KNF.N) and Saint-Gobain (SGOB.PA) from “outperform” to “market perform.” (For the convenience of non-English speakers, Reuters automatically translates its reports into several other languages. Since automated translations may contain errors or lack necessary context, Reuters does not guarantee their accuracy and provides them solely for the ease of the reader. Reuters assumes no liability for any damages or losses that may arise from the use of automated translation functions.)