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STC's Financial Results Improve in H1 2018

STC's Financial Results Improve in H1 2018
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STC's Financial Results Improve in H1 2018

STC's Financial Results Improve in H1 2018

Saudi Telecoms achieved positive growth in their announced results for the first half of 2018, with an improvement of 3.33 percent compared to the same period of 2017.

Saudi Telecom Company (STC) supported the improvement in the financial results of the Telecom sector.

It announced achieving a total profit of SR5.03 billion ($1.34 billion) during the first half of 2018, recording a positive growth rate of 2.87 percent.

Zain Saudi Arabia, for its part, showed a remarkable improvement in the level of revenues achieved during the first half of 2018, which confirms the company's ability to move forward in expanding its market share and increase the efficiency of its operational capabilities.

While Saudi Arabia's Mobily reported a 51.2 percent improvement in reduction of losses in the first half of 2018 compared to the same period last year.

The Saudi Telecom sector is expected to play a significant role in enhancing the investment attractiveness of the Saudi stock market, especially that the financial results of the sector have started to improve significantly since the Kingdom decided to reorganize the sector through a package of incentive legislation over the past two years.

These developments come as the Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC) is working to raise the quality of telecommunications services in the country.

It has recently announced a new update to regulate the quality of service provided by licensed telecommunications service providers, explaining that the new update will enter into force starting from the fourth quarter of 2018.

"This update aims to develop CIT services, provide high-quality communication services to subscribers, stimulate competition among service providers and enhance customer transparency by disseminating the comparative data of service providers and ensuring a minimum quality of telecommunications services to subscribers," CITC said in this regard.

It stressed that these moves will stimulate digital transformation to achieve the objectives of the National Transformation Program 2020 and the Kingdom’s Vision 2030.

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Fire, Smoke Upend Western Canada’s Summer Tourism Season

A helicopter works a forest fire outside of Jasper, Alberta, Canada, on Friday July 26, 2024. (Reuters)
A helicopter works a forest fire outside of Jasper, Alberta, Canada, on Friday July 26, 2024. (Reuters)
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Fire, Smoke Upend Western Canada’s Summer Tourism Season

A helicopter works a forest fire outside of Jasper, Alberta, Canada, on Friday July 26, 2024. (Reuters)
A helicopter works a forest fire outside of Jasper, Alberta, Canada, on Friday July 26, 2024. (Reuters)

Severe wildfire seasons are increasingly hurting western Canada's lucrative tourism industry, with some visitors beginning to avoid the busy late-summer months due to concerns about uncontrolled blazes, smoke-filled skies and road closures.

After a scorching start to July, nearly 600 wildfires are now ablaze across British Columbia and Alberta, including a huge fire that this week devastated the picturesque tourist town of Jasper in the Canadian Rockies.

Dozens of communities, including popular holiday spots in British Columbia's Kootenay region, are under evacuation orders and several highways are closed.

This year's surge in wildfire activity comes after Canada endured its worst-ever year for wildfires in 2023, when more than 15 million hectares (37 million acres) burned, including parts of the city of West Kelowna in the heart of British Columbia's wine region.

Ellen Walker-Matthews, head of the Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association, said the industry was seeing a lot more last-minute travel decisions instead of booking in advance.

"It's a huge blow. July and August are traditionally the busiest months in the region," said Walker-Matthews, adding that while her region has been relatively unscathed by wildfires this summer, some visitors are choosing to avoid interior British Columbia altogether.

The members of the British Columbia Lodging and Campgrounds Association are reporting a 5-15% drop in bookings from a year ago, with the biggest declines coming from the hotter Okanagan and Cariboo regions, said Joss Penny, who heads the association.

"The concern is that this is something we have to live with and we have it every year now," said Penny.

Although wildfires in Canada's forests are natural and common, scientists say drier, hotter conditions fueled by climate change are leading to more volatile and frequent blazes.

'SMOKEY SKIES'

Some events, like the Salmon Arm Roots and Blues Festival, usually held in August, have now been rescheduled to earlier in the summer to avoid what is now seen as peak smoke season. The festival, which was cancelled last year due to nearby wildfires, was this year moved to July to benefit from "less smokey skies."

Wildfires and extreme climatic events are prompting tourists to "change their plans not just temporarily, but permanently," said Elizabeth Halpenny, a tourism researcher and professor at the University of Alberta, noting that seasonal workers in the sector are often the hardest hit as they have few protections during a bad season or amid a cataclysmic fire.

Tourism contributed C$7.2 billion to the British Columbia economy in 2022, and C$9.9 billion to Alberta in 2023, according to the latest government data.

Jasper National Park is one of Canada's premier tourist destinations, with more than 2 million visitors a year flocking to see its pristine mountain landscapes and abundant wildlife, including grizzly bears, moose and elk.

Kelly Torrens, vice-president of product at international tour company Kensington Tours, described western Canada as a bucket-list destination. But the company now has 49 trips that were supposed to pass through Jasper this season in limbo. Six others were forced to evacuate the park when the fire hit.

Parks Canada has cancelled all camping reservations within Jasper National Park until Aug. 6 and with potentially 50% of the town's structures destroyed by fire, the cleanup and rebuild could take years.

Halpenny is among those hedging their bets.

"I've booked a campsite stay in the mountain parks but at the same time, I booked a campsite out on the prairie somewhere and that's my backup plan because I don't want to miss out on my vacation with my family."