DUBAI: The recent blockage of the Suez Canal by a massive container ship is being felt on the British High Street.
The incident has delayed the arrival of about 2 percent of stock for British fashion retailer Next, its CEO revealed on Thursday.
“It’s a problem but not a big problem. It’s delayed about 2 percent of our stock by three weeks,” CEO Simon Wolfson told Reuters.
Separately, the blockage could also trigger large reinsurance claims, adding to upward pressure on marine reinsurance rates, James Vickers, chair of reinsurance broker Willis Re International, told Reuters.
Formal investigations began this week into how the giant container ship Ever Given ran aground in the canal, shutting down shipping in the major global waterway for almost a week.
The incident and its impact on hundreds of ships delayed in the canal would be a “large loss” for insurance market Lloyd’s of London, its chairman Bruce Carnegie-Brown said.
'Have you got these in my Suez?' Canal blockage hits shoppers
https://arab.news/cjhye
'Have you got these in my Suez?' Canal blockage hits shoppers
- Next boss says blockage delays 2 percent of stock
- Reinsurance sector also feels the impact
Closing Bell: Saudi main index extends gains as market opens wider to foreign investment
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index rose on Monday, gaining 153.61 points, or 1.38 percent, to close at 11,321.09.
The total trading turnover of the benchmark index was SR5.85 billion ($1.56 billion), as 207 of the listed stocks advanced, while 55 retreated.
The MSCI Tadawul Index increased, up 21.20 points or 1.41 percent, to close at 1,524.18.
The Kingdom’s parallel market Nomu gained 278.13 points, or 1.17 percent, to close at 24,013.03. This comes as 43 of the listed stocks advanced, while 29 retreated.
The best-performing stock was Saudi Pharmaceutical Industries and Medical Appliances Corp., with its share price surging by 7.26 percent to SR28.94.
Other top performers included Rasan Information Technology Co., which saw its share price rise by 6.51 percent to SR144, and Knowledge Economic City, which saw a 6.25 percent increase to SR13.09.
On the downside, the worst performer of the day was Najran Cement Co., whose share price fell by 2.11 percent to SR6.49.
Almasane Alkobra Mining Co. and Saudi Cable Co. also saw declines, with their shares dropping by 2 percent and 1.88 percent to SR103.10 and SR166.80, respectively.
On the announcement front, Riyad Bank has announced its annual financial results for 2025, with the total income from special commission of financing reaching SR24.1 billion, while net income from special commission of financing amounted to SR12 billion.
In a statement on Tadawul, the bank said: “Net income increased by 11.7 percent mainly due to an increase in total operating income and a decrease in total operating expenses.”
The bank further noted that the rise in total operating income was primarily driven by increased revenue from fees and commissions, trading activities, special commissions, gains on non-trading investments, and other operating sources. This growth was partially tempered by declines in exchange and dividend income.
“Net provision of expected credit losses and other losses decreased by 15.8 percent due to a decrease in impairment charge of credit losses and impairment charge for other financial assets, partially offset by an increase in impairment charge for investments,” it added.
RIBL’s share price closed at SR18.18 on the main market, marking a 1.43 percent increase.
