Saudi Arabian petrochemical firms felt the full impact of lower oil prices in results posted on Thursday, with Saudi Arabia Fertilizers Co (SAFCO) reporting its Q4 net profit fell by more than half, as per Reuters.
The decline at SAFCO follows lower earnings earlier in the day from Saudi Kayan Petrochemical Co and Yanbu National Petrochemical Co (Yansab).
The firms largely blamed lower product prices caused by the sustained drop in oil prices and their poor showing is expected to be reflected in results from Saudi Basic Industries Corp (SABIC), one of the world's largest petrochemicals companies and parent to all three firms.
SABIC is due to announce its earnings on Monday and four analysts polled by Reuters forecast the state-controlled firm's fourth-quarter profit will fall by 2%.
Petrochemical product prices are closely linked to those of oil, while Saudi firms receive subsidized energy and feedstock. That means high oil prices give them better margins and a competitive advantage over rival manufacturers from non-oil producing regions, although this benefit diminishes as crude prices decline. Oil prices are at around 12-year lows
15-Jan-16 
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