Saudi Sabic profits rise to $1.45b in Q1
Rising petrochemical and plastics prices boosted net profits at Saudi petrochemicals giant Sabic to 5.43 billion riyals (1.45 billion dollars) in the first quarter of 2010, it said on Saturday.
The company posted a net loss of 970 million riyals (258 million dollars) in the same period last year, Sabic said in a statement on the Tadawul stock exchange.
The January-March figure was also an 18.6-percent jump from the fourth quarter of 2009's 4.58 billion riyal (1.22 billion dollars), as prices for products from the Gulf's largest listed company continued to rise.
Saudi Basic Industries Corporation's gross profits for the first quarter were 12.22 billion riyals (3.26 billion dollars), compared with 3.62 billion riyals (965 million dollars) last year, the statement said.
The company attributed the improvement to "the high volume of production and sales, and a marked improvement in the prices of most petrochemical products and plastics compared to the fourth quarter."
However, Sabic said its income from steel products was hurt by rising raw materials costs without corresponding increases in the prices of final goods.
Cheif executive Mohammed al-Mady said he expected the company to benefit this year from new production capacity coming on line in eastern Saudi Arabia and in China, "coinciding with signs of improvement in the global economy and the easing of the financial crisis.”
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