Sabic profits undershoot forecast
Saudi Basic Industries Corp (Sabic), one of the world’s largest petrochemical groups and the Gulf’s biggest listed firm, reported a 5.7 per cent rise in fourth-quarter net income yesterday, missing forecasts. It earned 6.16bn riyals (£1bn) in the quarter, up from a slightly revised figure of 5.83 bn riyals a year earlier, Sabic said. Operating profit rose much more slowly than net profit in the fourth quarter, edging up just 0.5 per cent to 10.30bn riyals.