Saudi Arabia: Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index rallied for the third consecutive day, gaining 19.44 points to close at 12,630.86. 

The Kingdom’s parallel market, Nomu, also rose on Thursday, gaining 110.79 points to reach 26,402.82. 

The MSCI Tadawul Index edged up by 0.06 percent to close at 1,623.68. 

The benchmark index posted a trading value of SR12.93 billion ($3.45 billion), with 97 stocks advancing and 123 declining.

Middle East Pharmaceutical Industries Co., also known as Avalon Pharma, which debuted on Tadawul on Tuesday, was the best performer of the day. The company’s share price surged by 29.91 percent to SR179.80. 

Other top performers were Al-Rajhi Co. for Cooperative Insurance and Saudi Automotive Services Co., whose share prices soared by 10 percent and 8.77 percent, respectively. 

The worst performer was Rabigh Refining and Petrochemical Co., as its share price slipped by 8.01 percent to SR8.27. 

On the announcements front, Saudi utility firm ACWA Power reported that its net profit inched up by 8 percent in 2023 to SR1.66 billion compared to the previous year. 

In a bourse filing, the company attributed the rise in profit to higher operating income from existing projects, mainly due to better plant availability. 

The company added that lower Zakat and tax charges, along with lower impairment loss and other expenses, also supported its net profit growth last year. 

In 2023, ACWA Power’s total revenue surged by 15.52 percent to SR6.09 billion compared to the preceding year. 

The statement revealed that total shareholders’ equity, after minority interest, stood at SR19.15 billion by Dec. 31, 2023, compared to SR18.65 billion a year ago. 

Meanwhile, Arabian Centers Co., also known as Cenomi Centers, announced the start of US dollar-denominated Shariah-compliant sukuk issuance.  

In a Tadawul statement, the company said that the issue value and the offer price will be determined pending the market conditions. 

On Thursday, Alinma Bank announced the completion of its dollar-denominated Additional Tier 1 capital certificates issuance at a value of $1 billion.  

The Additional Tier 1 capital certificates will be listed on the International Securities Market of the London Stock Exchange.