Qatar strengthens fiscal position with $245m budget surplus in Q4 

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index slipped on Thursday, losing 8.35 points, or 0.07 percent, to close at 12,354.04. 

The total trading turnover of the benchmark index was SR6.67 billion ($1.77 billion), as 112 of the stocks advanced and 114 retreated.  

Similarly, the Kingdom’s parallel market Nomu lost 154.28 points, or 0.50 percent, to close at 30,846.59. This comes as 32 of the listed stocks advanced while 49 retreated.  

The MSCI Tadawul Index also lost 1.64 points, or 0.11 percent, to close at 1,543.38.  

The best-performing stock of the day was Almoosa Health Co., whose share price surged 10 percent to SR154. 

Other top performers included Al Jouf Cement Co., whose share price rose 8.22 percent to SR12.90, as well as Northern Region Cement Co., whose share price surged 6.56 percent to SR9.91.

Saudi Reinsurance Co. recorded the most significant drop, falling 2.90 percent to SR60.20, while Middle East Specialized Cables Co. also saw its stock prices fall 2.67 percent to SR45.60. 

Kingdom Holding Co. recorded a drop of 2.42 percent to SR9.29.

On the announcements front, Riyad Bank has completed the offer of its SR-denominated additional tier 1 capital sukuk under its Additional Tier 1 Capital Sukuk Program, which is worth SR10 billion. 

According to a Tadawul statement, the total number of sukuk is 800, with the value of the offer standing at SR2 billion. The statement also showed that while the par value is SR250,000, the return is 6 percent per annum.

Riyad Bank ended the session at SR29.60, with no percentage change in price.

Albilad Capital has rebalanced the sukuk basket for the Albilad Saudi Sovereign Sukuk ETF to align with the components of the index. According to a bourse filing, the rebalancing took place on Jan. 22.

Albilad Capital ended the session at SR8.30, with no percentage change in price.

Saudi Arabian Cooperative Insurance Co. has decreased its accumulated losses to 0 percent of the capital. According to a Tadawul statement, this move is mainly attributed to the use of SR39 million out of the total statutory reserve balance amounting, to SR43 million to extinguish the firm’s accumulated losses. 

The company highlighted that the use of the company’s statutory reserve has no impact on its financial obligations.

Saudi Arabian Cooperative Insurance Co. ended the session at SR16.70, up 1.24 percent.

Arabian Plastic Industrial Co. has signed a contract with Badael Co., a Public Investment Fund firm, to manufacture and supply plastic containers for 3 years. 

A bourse filing revealed that the agreement value exceeds 5 percent of the company’s total revenues according to the audited annual financial statements for the year 2023. The filing also indicated that the financial impact of the deal is forecasted to be reflected positively on the financial statements starting from the first half of 2025.

Arabian Plastic Industrial Co. ended the session at SR37, up 1.23 percent.

DUBAI: While smart technologies unleash opportunities in investment and trade, concerted efforts must seek to bridge the “AI divide” in developing countries, a World Economic Forum panel heard on Thursday.

Deemah Al-Yahya, secretary-general of the Digital Cooperation Organization, said the need for energy, computing power and talent to activate AI would expand the digital gap in the developing world.

“An AI-generated image consumes more energy than charging your smartphone. That’s going to cause a great challenge for developed countries, so let alone developing countries that do not even have reliable energy.”

She added: “Another factor is who is going to get access to the computing power, considering the supply chain and cost? How can talents access the computer power to produce algorithms, local content and innovation?”

According to UN figures, 2.7 billion people do not have access to the Internet, with AI growth threatening to widen the digital gap.

However, using trading digital assets can increase access to new technologies, including AI, quantum computing and blockchain, in the global south, Al-Yahya said.

Highlighting the varying degrees of advancement of digital infrastructures among countries, Al-Yahya stressed harmonizing collaboration and bridge communication between the public and private sector, which served as the drivers of the digital economy.

One of the Digital Cooperation Organization’s mandates is to harmonize policies and regulations among 16 member states from Asia, Europe, Africa and the Middle East to expand technology use and grow their digital economy.

Addressing the benefits of AI in improving efficiency and reducing errors, Thani Ahmed Al-Zeyoudi, UAE minister of state for foreign trade, highlighted synergies and links to different tech systems, even within the same country.

“Many of those technologies are under deployment, but in various scattered ways. Each stakeholder is following their own way when it comes to customers, procedures and managements system,” said Al-Zeyoudi, highlighting the role of governments in implementing regulations that put AI to good use and ensure communication across stakeholders.

He addressed the UAE’s export of technologies to Africa, noting that the private sector took the lead in such initiatives.

“To avoid fragmentation as governments, we need to take the lead by putting (in place) a regulatory system that ensures that the private sector has the freedom to start doing their job, get the funding whenever required, and support them in talking to the right stakeholders,” he said.