RIYADH: Saudi Arabia's Tadawul Composite Index fell on Monday, closing at 12,121.40, down 54.03 points or 0.44 per cent.
The total trading volume of the benchmark index was SR6.9 billion (USD1.84 billion), with 69 listed stocks rising and 150 falling.
The MSCI Tadawul Index closed down 5.19 points, or 0.34%, at 1,519.30.
The kingdom's parallel market Nomu closed at 26,513.06, up 10.08 points or 0.04 percent, as 28 of the listed stocks rose while 31 fell.
The best performing stock of the day was Kingdom Holding Co., which gained 9.50% to SR9.80.
Other top performers included Saudi Automotive Services Co. and Tanmiah Food Co., which rose 6.14% and 3.43% to 62.20 riyals and 132.80 riyals, respectively.
Other top gainers included National Co.'s Glass Industries and Al-Rajhi Co.'s Cooperative Insurance.
The worst performer was Bawan Co., which fell 4.25% to SR47.30.
Other major decliners included Buruj Cooperative Insurance Co. and City Cement Co., which fell 3.87% and 3.68% to 20.86 riyals and 18.84 riyals, respectively.
Saudi Manpower Solutions Co. and Al Sagr Cooperative Insurance Co. also saw declines.
Arabian Cement Co. reported that its sales for the first half of 2024 fell 7.8% year-on-year to SR402.8 million.
The company said in a statement to Tadawul that the decline was due to lower sales volumes caused by lower demand, despite an increase in the parent company's average selling price.
However, net profit for the first half of this year rose 7.6% year-on-year to 83.1 million riyals, compared to 77.2 million riyals in the same period last year.
The increase was primarily due to a decrease in the group's cost of sales, an increase in the parent company's average selling price and a decrease in selling and distribution expenses.
Arabian Pipes Co.'s revenue for the same period surged 22.3% to SR651.8 million. Net profit also surged to SR111.8 million, up 96.3% compared to the same period in 2023.
The company attributed the increase in revenue to higher sales volumes, while net profit increased as gross profit increased from SR99.4m in the previous 12 months to SR180.5m in FY2024. The growth was primarily a result of improved production efficiency and supply chain management, as well as ongoing efforts to reduce production costs.
