Saudi-listed Petro Rabigh posts $173m profits as oil prices soar in Q1

RIYADH: Saudi stocks closed lower for the fourth straight day in the final trading session of the week as traders struggled to gain ground and energy prices fluctuated.

Oil price volatility continued with Brent crude reaching $105.38 per barrel and WTI crude reaching $103.61 per barrel, at 3:32 p.m. Saudi time.

The Saudi main stock index, TASI, was down 4.06 percent at 12,835, while the parallel market, Nomu, also dropped 0.12 percent to 22,646.

The Saudi Industrial Export Co. soared 9.98 percent to lead the gainers, following its shareholders approval to increase its capital by 800 percent to SR194 million ($51 million).

The financial sector continued to struggle as Banque Saudi Fransi slipped 9.96 percent to lead the fallers, while Alinma and Al Rajhi fell 7.09 and 6.53 percent, respectively.

Shares of Saudi Aramco, the dominant player on the Saudi oil market, edged down 1.76 percent.
 
Saudi Basic Industries Corp., known as SABIC, fell 1.63 percent, despite reporting a 33 percent increase in profit for the first quarter.

Herfy Food Services Co. slid 8.27 percent, despite the company posting a profit surge of 11.5 percent in the first quarter.

In the healthcare sector, Al-Dawaa Medical Services Co. shed 5.02 percent, after it reported a 10 percent increase in quarterly profits, while Nahdi Medical Co. edged 5.81 percent down.