SABIC CEO says Q3 results exceed expectations without Clariant provisions

Saudi Basic Industries Corp’s (SABIC) CEO Yousef Al-Benyan said that the company’s latest financial results exceed analysts’ expectations by 15-20 percent, without the SAR 1.5 billion impairment provision in Clariant AG investment.

Speaking during the press conference today, Al-Benyan said SABIC applies the highest international accounting standards which require companies to assess their assets compared to its current value, taking into consideration the current market situation, and to announce it every quarter.

“This is how we calculated the provision of Clariant AG investment, and added the average analysts’ expectation of SABIC’s stock over the next 12 months,” he added.

Al-Benyan further said that Clariant AG is doing well, adding that the calculation took into consideration the accurate price to buy SABIC’s stock.

Meanwhile, SABIC’s operational performance during the third quarter came 9 percent higher than the previous quarter, despite sales declines.

Earlier, the company reported a 65.24 percent decline in net profits during the first nine months 2019 to SAR 6.36 billion compared to SAR 18.3 billion during the same period 2018.

The drop was driven by lower average selling prices, in addition to recording a SAR 1.5 billion impairment provision in Clariant AG investment.