Major Saudi petrochemical company records $253.3m losses in three months

A major Saudi Arabian petrochemical company has recorded losses of $253.3 million in the first three months of 2020, agencies reported on Monday.

The figures for Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) compare badly with net revenues of $909.3m during the same period last year.

Based in Riyadh, SABIC is one of the largest petrochemical firms in the world. The Saudi government owns 70 per cent of the company.

Its losses are due to a rapid decline in sales, while the company’s capital value has also fallen by almost $300m.

SABIC blamed the losses on the fall in demand of its products due to the coronavirus pandemic. It warned that the impact of the crisis will probably stretch into the second quarter and possibly the rest of the year.

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