The net profit of the National Gas and Industrialization Holding Company (GASCO) increased by 47.5 percent on an annual basis during the third quarter of 2026, to reach 102.8 million riyals ($27.41 million), compared to about 69.7 million riyals ($18.59 million) in the same period last year.
The company said, in a statement on the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul) website on Wednesday, that the increase in quarterly profits is mainly due to the growth of total profit by 77.6 percent to 74.5 million riyals ($19.87 million), as a result of an increase in revenues by 60.5 percent, in addition to an increase in its share in the results of the business of associates by about 3.2 million riyals.
On a quarterly basis, the company's net profit increased by 73.6 percent, compared to about 59.2 million riyals ($15.79 million) in the second quarter of this year.
The company's shares rose by 10 percent to 60.60 riyals, following the announcement of the results.
The Chief Financial Officer of the Indian Mangalore Refining and Petrochemical Company (MRPL) said on Wednesday that the company is working to increase its purchases of crude oil on a “port delivery” basis. This is with the aim of reducing its exposure to shipping risks resulting from the Iran war, and reducing maritime transportation costs.
Attacks by Iranian forces on ships crossing the Strait of Hormuz - during the eight-month-long conflict - have prompted Middle Eastern oil producers to release more crude via ship-to-ship transfers outside the waterway, while offering discounts on shipping costs as part of port delivery contracts.
Under “port delivery” agreements, the supplier bears contractual responsibility for delivering the shipment to its final destination.
Devendra Kumar, CFO of MRPL, said during a meeting with analysts: “To reduce risks, we will continue to insist on delivery at port (DAP) shipments, but we will evaluate our options in the future based on the economic feasibility of delivery once the situation stabilizes.”
The company - a government refinery - is working to diversify its crude sources to ensure that its refinery, which has a production capacity of 300,000 barrels per day in the southern state of Karnataka, operates at full capacity.
Kumar explained that the company obtained about a fifth of its crude oil needs from the Middle East, and about a third of its needs from Russia during the quarter ending in September.
He added that local crude oil covered about a quarter of the company's needs, while the remaining quantities came from other regions, including West Africa and the Americas.
Kumar expressed his hope that some oil producers in the Middle East would provide “port delivery” shipments as part of annual supply agreements, which represents a shift from the traditional arrangements known as “delivery on board” (FOB), where buyers arrange shipping operations themselves.
He said: “We expect that some of these new formulas - which producers are currently offering - will continue in the future as well.”
Kumar pointed out that MRPL's priority is to meet the local demand for fuel, adding that the company's fuel exports may witness a decline during the next two months as domestic consumption in India increases.
Cryptocurrencies recovered on Wednesday from overnight losses, with markets rebounding after Democrats won control of both houses of the US Congress in the midterm elections, in a result that could be a blow to a sector that sought to accelerate the easing of regulatory restrictions imposed on digital assets.
Although Republican US President Donald Trump was the most prominent advocate for reducing regulatory restrictions on the sector, some Democrats also supported a less stringent regulatory approach, according to Reuters.
The cryptocurrency sector spent more than $300 million to support Republican and Democratic candidates who support digital currencies, in close proportions, during the current and previous election cycles.
Bitcoin briefly touched its lowest levels in 6 weeks, before recovering and rising by 0.7 percent to $78,354 by 08:41 GMT, following a reversal in the trend of stock markets, after US index futures rose by 0.3 percent, after falling by up to 2 percent overnight.
Ether rose 1.4 percent to $2,323.
Bitcoin has declined by about 41 percent since reaching a record level of more than $122,000 in October 2025, bringing the total value of the cryptocurrency market to about $2.61 trillion, according to data from the Coin Market Cap website.
Smaller currencies, including Solana, Dogecoin, and Cardano, also rose by rates ranging between 1.6 and 2.2 percent on Wednesday, but they all lost about a quarter of their value over the past month, according to the CoinGecko website.
Growing concerns about hacking and artificial intelligence
The cryptocurrency market lost about $300 billion in value over the past month, in light of growing concerns about the future returns of investments in artificial intelligence, and the pressures of rising borrowing costs, which prompted investors to shift towards less risky assets, such as government bonds and safe haven currencies.
Investors withdrew $215 million from the largest exchange-traded funds backed by Bitcoin during October, bringing net outflows since the beginning of the year to $1.84 billion, according to LSEG and Lipper data.
Investor morale was also damaged by the hacking of the Binance platform worth $6 billion last week, the largest theft in the history of cryptocurrencies. This led to the largest weekly net outflows from Bitcoin traded funds since early July, amounting to $884 million, according to the data.
By Tuesday, Binance customers had withdrawn a net $4.72 billion from the world's largest cryptocurrency trading platform, since it reopened over the weekend following the hack.
Tim Sun, senior researcher at HashKey, said that the market may re-evaluate the balance of risks and returns associated with encrypted assets, explaining that a series of security incidents push investors to reconsider the sector’s security infrastructure and the risks of preserving assets.
He added that potential shifts in the American political landscape may hinder progress in legislation regulating cryptocurrencies and the development of institutional frameworks for the sector. Pointing out that these factors together impose great pressure on the market.
Trump had pledged during his 2024 presidential campaign to make the United States “the cryptocurrency capital of the world,” and he himself entered the field of digital assets through projects that included launching the “Trump” meme currency, along with his family’s cryptocurrency platform, “World Liberty Financial.”
In the nearly two years since his return to the White House, Trump has eased regulatory enforcement measures and launched an initiative to create a strategic reserve of Bitcoin.
Washington also provided easier access to banking services and exchange-traded products, and passed a federal stablecoin law that would help integrate these assets into mainstream payments and money transfer systems.
