RIYADH: Saudi Arabia's Tadawul All Share Index fell on Monday, losing 54.03 points or 0.44 percent to close at 12,121.40.
Total trading turnover for the benchmark index was SR6.90 billion ($1.84 billion) as 69 of the listed stocks advanced while 150 retreated.
The MSCI Tadawul index was down 5.19 points, or 0.34 percent, to close at 1,519.30.
The royal parallel market Nomu rose 10.08 points, or 0.04 percent, to close at 26,513.06. This is due to the fact that 28 of the listed stocks advanced while as many as 31 retreated.
The top performer of the day was Kingdom Holding Co., whose share price rose 9.50 percent to SR9.80.
Other top performers include Saudi Automotive Services Co. and Tanmiah Food Co., whose share prices rose 6.14 percent and 3.43 percent to SR62.20 and SR132.80, respectively.
Other top gainers included National Co. for Glass Industries and Al-Rajhi Co. for Cooperative Insurance.
The worst performer was Bawan Co., whose share price fell 4.25 percent to SR47.30.
Other notable decliners included Buruj Cooperative Insurance Co. and City Cement Co., with share prices down 3.87 percent and 3.68 percent to SR20.86 and SR18.84, respectively.
Saudi Manpower Solutions Co. and Al Sagr Cooperative Insurance Co. also saw a drop in stock prices.
Regarding the announcement, Arabian Cement Co. reported a 7.8 percent decline in revenue, falling to SR 402.8 million in the first half of 2024 compared to the same period last year.
In a statement to the Tadawul, the company attributed the decline to lower sales volume due to reduced demand, despite an increase in the average selling price for the parent company.
However, its net profit rose 7.6 percent to SR83.1 million in the first six months of this year, compared to SR77.2 million in the same period last year.
The increase was mainly due to a reduction in the group's selling costs, an increase in the parent company's average selling price and a reduction in selling and distribution costs.
Sales of Arabian Pipes Co. in the same period, they increased by 22.3 percent to SR 651.8 million. Its net profit also surged to SR 111.8 million, an increase of 96.3 percent compared to the same period in 2023.
The company attributed the increase in revenue to higher sales volume, with net profit rising due to gross profit climbing to SR180.5 million in the 2024 financial year from SR99.4 million in the previous 12-month period. This growth is largely the result of improved efficiency in manufacturing and supply chain management, as well as ongoing efforts to reduce production costs.
