Saudi shares close higher on telco sector rise

Saudi shares closed narrowly higher on Saturday, with gains for Saudi telecom firm Mobily after impressive profit results, but losses in the key petrochemical and banking sectors after lacklustre fourth-quarter earnings.

The all-share ended 0.2 percent higher, closing at 7,050 points and the telecommunication index closed 1.5 percent higher to 2,236 points.

Shares in Etihad Etisalat (Mobily) added 1.4 percent after announcing better-than-expected fourth-quarter net profits of SR1.88bn.

The petrochemical index dropped 0.4 percent to 60,049 points, weighed by petrochemical giant Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC), which slid 0.5 percent after announcing lower-than-expected net profits.

The banking index also closed lower, dropping 0.03 percent.