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Oil Heads for Weekly Gains after Israel Rejects Ceasefire Offer

A pumpjack brings oil to the surface in the Monterey Shale, California, US April 29, 2013. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson/File Photo
A pumpjack brings oil to the surface in the Monterey Shale, California, US April 29, 2013. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson/File Photo
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Oil Heads for Weekly Gains after Israel Rejects Ceasefire Offer

A pumpjack brings oil to the surface in the Monterey Shale, California, US April 29, 2013. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson/File Photo
A pumpjack brings oil to the surface in the Monterey Shale, California, US April 29, 2013. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson/File Photo

Oil prices were little changed on Friday, staying on track for weekly gains, with tensions persisting in the Middle East after Israel rejected a ceasefire offer from Hamas.
Brent crude futures slipped 1 cent to $81.62 a barrel by 0334 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 3 cents to $76.25 a barrel.
Both benchmarks rose about 3% in the previous session as Israeli forces bombed the southern border city of Rafah on Thursday after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected a proposal to end the war in the Palestinian enclave.
The tensions have kept oil prices elevated, with Brent and WTI both set to gain more than 5% for the week, Reuters said.
"The move yesterday seemed a bit excessive on the back of not very much at least in terms of fundamentals," ING's head of commodities research Warren Patterson said.
"I still expect the rangebound trading that we have become accustomed to recently will continue given the comfortable oil balance."
US officials made their most pointed criticism so far of Israel's civilian casualties in Gaza as it turned the focus of its offensive to Rafah.
A Hamas delegation arrived in Cairo on Thursday for ceasefire talks with mediators Egypt and Qatar.
While the conflict has propped up prices, there has been no impact on oil production.
Non-OPEC output from Norway and Guyana is increasing while Russia is exporting more crude in February than it planned following a combination of drone attacks and technical outages at its refineries that could undermine its pledge to curb sales under an OPEC+ pact.
Under the deal with the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies, called OPEC+, Russia committed to capping crude output at 9.5 million barrels per day (bpd). It is also voluntarily cutting crude exports by 300,000 bpd and fuel exports by 200,000 bpd from the average May-June level.
Deflation risks in China, the world's top crude oil importer, are also weighing on global oil prices, IG analyst Tony Sycamore said.
"I think the lower crude oil price in Asia is largely due to early weakness in China's equity markets and the fallout from yesterday's shocking CPI figure in China which has served to further undermine confidence ahead of the Lunar New Year celebrations," he added.

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Revenue Growth, Improved Operational Efficiency Boost Profitability of Saudi Telecom Companies

A man monitors the movement of stocks on the Saudi Tadawul index. (AFP)
A man monitors the movement of stocks on the Saudi Tadawul index. (AFP)
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Revenue Growth, Improved Operational Efficiency Boost Profitability of Saudi Telecom Companies

A man monitors the movement of stocks on the Saudi Tadawul index. (AFP)
A man monitors the movement of stocks on the Saudi Tadawul index. (AFP)

Telecommunications companies listed on the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul) achieved a 12.46 percent growth in their net profits, which reached SAR 4.07 billion ($1.09 billion) during the second quarter of 2024, compared to SAR 3.62 billion ($965 million) during the same period last year.

They also recorded a 4.76 percent growth in revenues during the same quarter, after achieving sales worth more than SAR 26.18 billion ($7 billion), compared to SAR 24.99 billion ($6.66 billion) in the same quarter of 2023.

The growth in the revenues and net profitability is the result of several factors, including the increase in sales volume and revenues, especially in the business sector and fifth generation services, as well as the decrease in operating expenses and the focus on improving operational efficiency, controlling costs, and moving towards investment in infrastructure.

The sector comprises four companies, three of which conclude their fiscal year in December: Saudi Telecom Company (STC), Mobily, and Zain Saudi Arabia. The fiscal year of Etihad Atheeb Telecommunications Company (GO) ends on March 31.

According to its financial results announced on Tadawul, Etihad Etisalat Company (Mobily) achieved a 33 percent growth rate of profits, bringing its profits to SAR 661 million by the end of the second quarter of 2024, compared to SAR 497 million during the same period in 2023. The company also achieved a 4.59 percent growth in revenues to reach SAR 4.47 billion, compared to SAR 4.27 billion in the same quarter of last year.

The Saudi Telecom Company achieved the highest net profits among the sector’s companies, at about SAR 3.304 billion in the second quarter of 2024, compared to SAR 3.008 billion in the same quarter of 2023. The company registered a growth of 4.52 percent in revenues.

On the other hand, the revenues of the Saudi Mobile Telecommunications Company (Zain Saudi Arabia) increased by about 6.69 percent, as it recorded SAR 2.55 billion during the second quarter of 2024, compared to SAR 2.39 billion in the same period last year.

Commenting on the quarterly results of the sector’s companies, and the varying net profits, the head of asset management at Rassanah Capital, Thamer Al-Saeed, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the Saudi Telecom Company remains the sector leader in terms of customer base expansion.

He also noted the continued efforts of Mobily and Zain to offer many diverse products and other services.

Financial advisor at the Arab Trader Mohammed Al-Maymouni said the financial results of telecom sector companies have maintained a steady growth, up to 12 percent, adding that Mobily witnessed strong progress compared to the rest of the companies, despite the great competition which affected its revenues.

He added that Zain was moving at a good pace and its revenues have improved during the second quarter of 2024. However, its profits were affected by an increase in the financing cost by SAR 26.5 million riyals and a rise in interest, while net income declined significantly compared to the previous year, during which the company made exceptional returns.