The board of Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic), the Middle East's biggest petrochemicals company, approved a dividend of 6.75 billion Saudi riyals ($1.8bn) for the first half of 2022, as the company continues to post profits amid a market recovery.
The first-half cash dividend of 2.25 riyals a share represents 22.5 per cent of the nominal share value and will be distributed to eligible shareholders on October 2, Sabic said in a statement on Sunday to the Tadawul Stock Exchange, where its shares are traded.
The dividend will be distributed to shareholders “who own the company shares on the eligibility date and enrolled in the company's register at Securities Depository Centre Company (Edaa) by the end of the second trading day following the due date, corresponding to September 11, 2022”, the company said.
Sabic is majority-owned by the world’s largest oil-exporting company, Saudi Aramco, which acquired a 70 per cent stake in the company in 2020 for $69bn.
The company reported a 33 per cent jump in first-quarter profit after revenue rose on higher average selling prices and volumes.
Net profit after zakat and tax for the three months to the end of March climbed to 6.47bn riyals as revenue during the period rose 40 per cent to 53bn riyals.
“Sabic’s first-quarter results demonstrated strong performance, driven by continued healthy demand for our products, higher oil prices and our diverse global portfolio,” Yousef Al Benyan, the company's vice chairman and chief executive, said at the time.
Oil prices have continued to trade higher, supported by supply concerns caused by Russia’s military offensive in Ukraine. Brent, the global benchmark for two-thirds of the world's oil, is up more than 40 per cent since the start of this year, after falling from a 14-year high of about $140 a barrel in the middle of March amid the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Aggregate earnings of Saudi Arabia’s listed petrochemicals companies are expected to “normalise” this year after a record 2021 amid changing market dynamics, SNB Capital, the investment banking arm of the kingdom’s biggest lender, said in a report earlier this year.
The specs: 2019 GMC Yukon Denali
Price, base: Dh306,500
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Power: 420hp @ 5,600rpm
Torque: 621Nm @ 4,100rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.9L / 100km
THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
RESULTS
6.30pm: Emirates Holidays Maiden (TB) Dh 82,500 (Dirt) 1,900m
Winner: Lady Snazz, Richard Mullen (jockey), Satish Seemar (trainer).
7.05pm: Arabian Adventures Maiden (TB) Dh 82,500 (D) 1,200m
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7.40pm: Emirates Skywards Handicap (TB) Dh 82,500 (D) 1,200m
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Winner: Firnas, Xavier Ziani, Salem bin Ghadayer.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
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- 600-seat auditorium
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Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
Tips to stay safe during hot weather
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Biog
Age: 50
Known as the UAE’s strongest man
Favourite dish: “Everything and sea food”
Hobbies: Drawing, basketball and poetry
Favourite car: Any classic car
Favourite superhero: The Hulk original
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League final:
Who: Real Madrid v Liverpool
Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
When: Saturday, May 26, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Company%20profile
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Abu Dhabi GP schedule
Friday: First practice - 1pm; Second practice - 5pm
Saturday: Final practice - 2pm; Qualifying - 5pm
Sunday: Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (55 laps) - 5.10pm
