Ma’aden Annual Profits Fall to SAR 1.6 Billion, Drop 12.5% in 4th Quarter

 A metal factory affiliated with Ma’aden (Asharq Al-Awsat)
A metal factory affiliated with Ma’aden (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Ma’aden Annual Profits Fall to SAR 1.6 Billion, Drop 12.5% in 4th Quarter

 A metal factory affiliated with Ma’aden (Asharq Al-Awsat)
A metal factory affiliated with Ma’aden (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Ma’aden) recorded a decrease in its net profits during 2023 by about 83.07 percent, mainly as a result of decline in sales on the back of lower commodity market prices of all products except gold.

In a disclosure to the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul), the company said that its net profit after zakat and tax dropped to SAR 1.58 billion, compared to SAR 9.32 billion in 2022.

The company attributed the reason for the decrease in net profit due to the decline in sales as a result of lower prices of commodity for all products except gold.

The company added that net profit was also impacted by higher finance cost due to increased borrowing rates and lower share of profit from joint ventures on the back of lower commodity market prices. This was partially offset by lower raw material prices, higher income from time deposit and lower income taxes and zakat.

Moreover, sales during the current year decreased by SAR 11 billion (27%) compared to last year, which is mainly due to lower commodity prices for all products except gold. This decrease in sales was partially offset by higher sales volumes of ammonia phosphate fertilizer, alumina and gold, Ma’aden reported.

It noted that sales amounted to about SAR 29.27 billion, compared to SAR 40.28 billion in 2022.



Oil Edges Up on Strong US GDP Data

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 Edges Up on Strong US GDP Data

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 up slightly on Friday on stronger-than-expected US economic data that raised investor expectations for increasing crude oil demand from the world's largest energy consumer.

But concerns about soft economic conditions in Asia's biggest economies, China and Japan, capped gains.

Brent crude futures for September rose 7 cents to $82.44 a barrel by 0014 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate crude for September increased 4 cents to $78.32 per barrel, Reuters reported.

In the second quarter, the US economy grew at a faster-than-expected annualised rate of 2.8% as consumers spent more and businesses increased investments, Commerce Department data showed. Economists polled by Reuters had predicted US gross domestic product would grow by 2.0% over the period.

At the same time, inflation pressures eased, which kept intact expectations that the Federal Reserve would move forward with a September interest rate cut. Lower interest rates tend to boost economic activity, which can spur oil demand.

Still, continued signs of trouble in parts of Asia limited oil price gains.

Core consumer prices in Japan's capital were up 2.2% in July from a year earlier, data showed on Friday, raising market expectations of an interest rate hike in the near term.

But an index that strips away energy costs, seen as a better gauge of underlying price trends, rose at the slowest annual pace in nearly two years, suggesting that price hikes are moderating due to soft consumption.

China, the world's biggest crude importer, surprised markets for a second time this week by conducting an unscheduled lending operation on Thursday at steeply lower rates, suggesting authorities are trying to provide heavier monetary stimulus to prop up the economy.