Riyadh – Mubasher: Saudi International Petrochemical (Sipchem) on Sunday posted robust financial results for the nine-month period ended 30 September 2018 and the third quarter of the year.

The petrochemical maker achieved a 98.9% surge in net profits after zakat and tax to SAR 543 million ($144.71 million) between January and September versus SAR 273 million ($72.75 million) in the corresponding period of 2017, the firm said in a statement to the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul).

Revenues grew by 25.2% to SAR 3.983 billion during the nine months to 30 September 2018 from SAR 3.181 billion a year ago, while operating profit increased 54.88% year-on-year to SAR 1.022 billion from SAR 659.7 million and total profit jumped 43% to SAR 1.430 billion versus SAR 1 billion, Sipchem revealed.

Earnings per share (EPS) was SAR 1.48 during the first nine months of 2018 versus SAR 0.74 in the same period of 2017.

The Saudi petrochemical manufacturer ascribed the strong results to higher net profit from shareholders as revenues grew on the back of higher average selling prices of Sipchem’s products.

As for Q3-18, the Saudi company’s net profits after zakat and tax grew 48.27% to SAR 180.3 million from SAR 121.6 million in Q3-17.

Quarter-on-quarter, Sipchem’s profits decreased 14.71% from SAR 211.4 million.

Operating profit grew 29.38% year-on-year to SAR 328 million in Q3-18 from SAR 253.5 million, while total profit increased 28.17% to SAR 470.4 million from SAR 367 million in Q3-17.

Sipchem attributed the Q3-18 profit growth to higher net profit attributable to shareholders on the back of higher revenues owing to “the company’s ongoing efforts to improve the plants operating efficiency and increase in average selling prices of company’s products,” the firm said in its statement.

Sipchem’s revenues rose 25.77% to SAR 1.338 billion between July and September from SAR 1.064 billion in the same period of 2017, according to the filing.