Saudi Firms Announce Q4 2018 Results

 Investors talk as they monitor screens displaying stock information at the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul) in Riyadh. REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser
Investors talk as they monitor screens displaying stock information at the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul) in Riyadh. REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser
TT

Saudi Firms Announce Q4 2018 Results

 Investors talk as they monitor screens displaying stock information at the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul) in Riyadh. REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser
Investors talk as they monitor screens displaying stock information at the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul) in Riyadh. REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser

The Tadawul All Share Index ended 0.2 percent higher Monday, closing at 8,402 points – a rise of 19 points amid trading value worth around SAR3.7 billion (USD986.6 million). Also, the market value rose to SAR1.99 trillion (USD530 billion) – a very close value to the record rate during a whole year.

The strong gains of Tadawul All Share Index boost investors’ confidence in the capital market trading and the capability of Saudi listed companies to achieve better profits in 2019.

Saudi firms started announcing fiscal results of Q4 2018, in which 10 listed companies have announced their results so far – these outcomes revealed a profits growth of 30 percent compared to the same period in 2017.

Fiscal results show profits’ growth of 809.5 percent at Safco, 61.7 percent at Aldrees Company, 49.6 percent at Saudi Kayan Petrochemical Company, and 42 percent at National Company for Education & Learning while profits of Almarai dropped 27 percent.

The rest of the Saudi firms are expected to reveal their fiscal results in the coming days, amid expectations that Q4 profits of 2018 would be better compared to the same period in 2017.

The Saudi capital market witnessed in 2018 listing two companies in the main market and one in Nomu - Parallel Market.

Greater listing operations are anticipated n 2019.



IMF Approves Third Review of Sri Lanka's $2.9 Bln Bailout

Peter Breuer, Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF along with Katsiaryna Svirydzenka, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF and Martha Tesfaye Woldemichael, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF, attend a press conference organized by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Thilina Kaluthotage
Peter Breuer, Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF along with Katsiaryna Svirydzenka, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF and Martha Tesfaye Woldemichael, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF, attend a press conference organized by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Thilina Kaluthotage
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IMF Approves Third Review of Sri Lanka's $2.9 Bln Bailout

Peter Breuer, Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF along with Katsiaryna Svirydzenka, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF and Martha Tesfaye Woldemichael, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF, attend a press conference organized by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Thilina Kaluthotage
Peter Breuer, Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF along with Katsiaryna Svirydzenka, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF and Martha Tesfaye Woldemichael, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF, attend a press conference organized by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Thilina Kaluthotage

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved the third review of Sri Lanka's $2.9 billion bailout on Saturday but warned that the economy remains vulnerable.
In a statement, the global lender said it would release about $333 million, bringing total funding to around $1.3 billion, to the crisis-hit South Asian nation. It said signs of an economic recovery were emerging, Reuters reported.
In a note of caution, it said "the critical next steps are to complete the commercial debt restructuring, finalize bilateral agreements with official creditors along the lines of the accord with the Official Creditor Committee and implement the terms of the other agreements. This will help restore Sri Lanka's debt sustainability."
Cash-strapped Sri Lanka plunged into its worst financial crisis in more than seven decades in 2022 with a severe dollar shortage sending inflation soaring to 70%, its currency to record lows and its economy contracting by 7.3% during the worst of the fallout and by 2.3% last year.
"Maintaining macroeconomic stability and restoring debt sustainability are key to securing Sri Lanka's prosperity and require persevering with responsible fiscal policy," the IMF said.
The IMF bailout secured in March last year helped stabilize economic conditions. The rupee has risen 11.3% in recent months and inflation disappeared, with prices falling 0.8% last month.
The island nation's economy is expected to grow 4.4% this year, the first increase in three years, according to the World Bank.
However, Sri Lanka still needs to complete a $12.5 billion debt restructuring with bondholders, which President Anura Kumara Dissanayake aims to finalize in December.
Sri Lanka will enter into individual agreements with bilateral creditors including Japan, China and India needed to complete a $10 billion debt restructuring, Dissanayake said.
He won the presidency in September, and his leftist coalition won a record 159 seats in the 225-member parliament in a general election last week.