7 things you need to know on Tadawul today

Here are a few things you need to know as Saudi stocks start trading on Thursday. 

1) Banque Saudi Fransi’s net profit for Q1 rose 195 percent to SAR 1.1 billion compared to the previous quarter, due to a 50 percent decline in total operating expenses.

2) Taiba Holding Co. will pay 4 percent cash dividend at SAR 0.40 per share for Q4-2016 within two weeks. The company will also pay 4 percent cash dividend (SAR 0.40 per share) for Q1-2017.

3) Saudi Ground Services Co. has amended the prices of some services provided under the handling agreement with Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia). The new prices are expected to result in a drop of SAR 31 million in SGS’s revenue this year.

4) Saudi Public Transport Co. (SAPTCO) has signed a contract to purchase 50 Mercedes buses at a total value of SAR 61.5 million.

5) Saudi Arabia Refineries Co.’s (SARCO) lawsuit against Arabian Sulfonates Co. (ASCO) has been postponed to May 10.

6) Saudi Arabia has set the final issuance amount for its first international Islamic bond or sukuk at $9 billion, split equally between a five-year and a 10-year tranche, the kingdom’s finance ministry said in a statement on Thursday.

7) Brent crude rose slightly this morning to $55.87/bbl while WTI crude was down 0.1 percent to $53.08/bbl.