SABIC swings to $410m profit as operational gains offset weak sales 

RIYADH: Saudis spent SR170.6 million ($45.4 million) on electronic devices between Feb. 16 and 22, marking a 4 percent increase compared to the previous week.

According to the latest point-of-sale transactions bulletin issued by the Saudi Central Bank, this sector was one of the few that registered positive growth during the week.

Outlays on clothing and footwear saw a 3.4 percent increase in transaction value to SR873.1 million, with transactions growing by 2.9 percent to 6.5 million.

Expenditure on furniture also saw boosts, surging 3.3 percent to SR359.3 million, while hotels followed with a 2 percent rise to SR367 million, and recreation and culture recorded a 0.9 percent uptick to SR269.7 million. 

In contrast, overall POS transactions in Saudi Arabia declined by 2.1 percent, dropping to SR13 billion from SR13.3 billion the previous week, as spending in other sectors cooled, revealed the bulletin issued by SAMA.

Similarly, spending on food and beverages recorded a decrease of 3.7 percent to SR1.904 billion, claiming the largest share of the total POS value. Expenditure in restaurants and cafes followed closely, recording a 1.7 percent decrease to SR1.903 billion. 

Miscellaneous goods and services accounted for the third biggest POS share, with a 3.7 percent downtick, reaching SR1.5 billion. 

The leading three categories accounted for approximately 41 percent, or SR5.3 billion, of the week’s total value.

At 11.6 percent, the most significant decrease occurred in spending on jewelry, leading total payments to SR262.7 million. 

Expenditures on public utilities followed, dipping by 7.7 percent to SR52.3 million, while spending in the health sector recorded a 7.3 percent fall to SR749.6 million.

Geographically, Riyadh dominated POS transactions, representing around 35.3 percent of the total, with expenses in the capital reaching SR4.6 billion — a 2.6 percent decrease from the previous week. 

Jeddah followed with a 1.2 percent dip to SR1.8 billion, and Dammam came in third at SR646.2 million, down 2.1 percent. 

Tabuk experienced the most significant decrease in spending, falling 5.6 percent to SR229.4 million. 

Hail and Makkah followed, with declines of 1.9 percent and 0.1 percent, bringing their respective totals to SR196.9 million and SR555.8 million.

Tabuk and Makkah saw the largest decreases in terms of number of transactions, slipping 5.8 percent and 3.3 percent, respectively, to 4.3 million and 8.4 million transactions.

SINGAPORE: Oil prices rose marginally on Wednesday, bouncing off two-month lows hit in the prior session after an industry group reported US crude stockpiles fell last week.

Brent crude rose 20 cents, or 0.3 percent, to $73.22 a barrel by 7:30 a.m. Saudi time. US West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures were up 18 cents, or 0.3 percent, to $69.11.

US crude stocks fell 640,000 barrels in the week ended Feb. 21, market sources said on Tuesday, citing American Petroleum Institute data. Official US stockpile data is due later on Wednesday.

“If confirmed by the EIA later today, it would mark the first decline in US crude oil inventories since mid-January,” said ING commodities strategists in a note on Wednesday.

Analysts polled by Reuters estimated a 2.6-million-barrel increase in US crude stocks last week.

On the supply side, prospects for a peace deal between Russian and Ukraine are improving, said ING, while the market also eyed the potential implications of a minerals deal between the US and Ukraine.

“This would take us a step closer to Russian sanctions being lifted, removing much of the supply uncertainty hanging over the market,” the ING strategists said.

The US and Ukraine agreed terms of a draft minerals deal central to Trump’s efforts to rapidly end the war, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, dour economic reports from the US and Germany capped price gains, after pulling oil prices more than 2 percent lower on Tuesday. Brent crude closed at its lowest since Dec. 23, while WTI recorded its lowest settlement since Dec. 10.

US data showed consumer confidence in February deteriorated at its sharpest pace in 3-1/2 years, with 12-month inflation expectations surging. Meanwhile, the German economy shrank in the last three months of 2024 versus the prior quarter.

Oil prices have been buffeted by concerns that US President Donald Trump’s decisions about tariffs against China and other trading partners could add to pressure on the country’s economy.

That has eased worries about tighter near-term oil supply despite fresh US sanctions against Iran, ANZ Bank analysts wrote in a note to clients.

Even though US policy measures could drive an up to 1 million barrel-per-day reduction in Iranian crude exports, any loss in supply from the Middle Eastern nation is countered by OPEC+ members hoping to bring more supply to the market in the months ahead, Commodity Context analyst Rory Johnston said.