������Ƶ

RIYADH: The Saudi Exchange closed higher on Monday, with the Tadawul All Share Index climbing 0.63 percent to finish at 10,876.42 points, gaining 67.74 points from the previous session.   

A total of 261.25 million shares were traded, with a turnover of SR5.16 billion ($1.37 billion). Market breadth was negative, as 101 stocks advanced while 146 declined.  

The parallel market Nomu slipped 0.20 percent, closing at 25,299.42 points, while the MSCI Tadawul 30 Index rose 0.98 percent to 1,414.81 points.  

Among the top performers, Raoom Trading Co. surged 9.95 percent to SR61.90, followed by Saudi Cable Co., which rose 6.56 percent to SR152.70.

Al Yamamah Steel Industries gained 6.12 percent to SR36.06, while Arab National Bank advanced 4.91 percent to SR23.50.

Baazeem Trading Co. also added 4.63 percent to close at SR6.10.  

Fawaz Abdulaziz Alhokair Co. led the losses, falling 6.27 percent to SR26.90. Umm Al Qura for Development and Construction dropped 2.82 percent to SR23.44, and East Pipes Integrated slid 2.64 percent to SR114.50.

Americana Restaurants International PLC lost 2.54 percent to close at SR1.92, and Saudi Steel Pipe Co. declined 2.51 percent to end the session at SR49.28.  

On the announcement front, Dar Al Arkan Real Estate Development Co. confirmed the completion of all procedures related to the registration and transfer of ownership of land in Jeddah valued at SR4.46 billion.   

The company said the deal, covering an area of over one million square meters, is the largest real estate transaction completed in the history of Jeddah City.   

Dar Al Arkan’s share in the land ownership amounts to 80 percent. Its shares closed at SR16.12, up 2.09 percent.  

Perfect Presentation for Commercial Services Co., known as 2P, announced it has been awarded a project worth SR100 million from the General Organization for Social Insurance to manage and operate contact center services.   

The contract, which involves infrastructure, technology solutions, and workforce training, is expected to be signed on Nov. 2, 2025.  

Shares of 2P ended the day at SR10.54, rising 0.19 percent.  

Meanwhile, Saudia Dairy and Foodstuff Co. declared an interim cash dividend for the first half of 2025 totaling SR255.94 million, representing SR8 per share, or 80 percent of the share’s nominal value.   

The distribution date is set for Oct. 14, with eligibility for shareholders recorded on Sept. 25.  

SADAFCO shares closed at SR264, gaining 1.69 percent.  

JEDDAH: ������Ƶ’s ports authority has launched its 30th new shipping service of the year, adding a direct route between Jeddah Islamic Port and Port Sudan. 

The “JSS” service, operated by Marsa Ocean Shipping, offers capacity for 1,118 containers and is expected to strengthen trade flows across the Red Sea and support the Kingdom’s exports, said the Saudi Ports Authority, also known as Mawani. 

The move is part of Mawani’s drive to improve global rankings, enhance efficiency at Jeddah port, and strengthen ������Ƶ’s role as a trade link between Asia, Africa, and Europe.

The initiative also supports Vision 2030 goals to raise the logistics sector’s contribution to gross domestic product from 6 percent to 10 percent by 2030. 

In a post on its official X handle, the authority said: “As part of Mawani’s ongoing efforts to enhance the competitiveness of the Kingdom’s ports, the ‘JSS’ shipping service, operated by ‘Marsa Ocean Shipping,’ has been added to Jeddah Islamic Port, representing the 30th new service introduced since the start of 2025.” 

This comes on the back of several new connections, with Goodrich launching the RSX1 service in August, linking Jeddah to Port Sudan, Djibouti, and Jebel Ali in the UAE with 720 TEUs capacity, while Blue Ocean Shipping introduced the BOS service to Qingdao, Ningbo, and Nansha in China, with 2,300 TEUs capacity. 

In July, CMA CGM began operating the LRX service, connecting Jeddah to Latakia in Syria, as well as Iskenderun and Mersin in Turkiye, and Beirut in Lebanon, with a capacity of 2,826 TEUs. That marked ������Ƶ’s first direct shipping link with Syria. 

Other recent additions include the AR2 Asia Redsea service by Wan Hai Lines, linking Jeddah to major ports in China, Turkiye, Egypt, and Jordan with a capacity of 3,700 TEUs, and the IM2 service by Emirates Line and Wan Hai, connecting to Mundra in India, Alexandria in Egypt, and Mersin in Turkiye. 

In March, Mawani launched the “Chinook Clanga” service, operated by Mediterranean Shipping Co., at King Abdulaziz Port in Dammam and Jubail Commercial Port, connecting ������Ƶ’s eastern ports to 16 regional and international destinations. 

The service strengthens links across the Arabian Gulf to key ports, including Khalifa Bin Salman in Bahrain, Hamad in Qatar, Nhava Sheva in India, Colombo in Sri Lanka, and Singapore.