Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain – 12 May 2009 - Bahrain–based Securities & Investment Company (SICO) announced today its first quarter results for 2009.  The company reported a loss of BD167,000 for the period compared to a profit of BD3.5 million for the first quarter of 2008.  Operating income reduced from BD4.4 million in the first quarter of 2008 to BD670,000 for the first quarter of 2009.  The loss per share was 0.39 fils for 2009 against a profit of 11.14 fils per share for the same period of the previous year.  The reduction in profit and operating income reflects the effect of the current downturn in the regional and global capital markets.

Following the pre-emptive action taken during 2008, SICO is able to maintain a stable capital base ending the quarter with BD 49.5 million in shareholder equity compared to BD 49.9 million as of 31^st, December 2008. SICO’s outlook continues to be conservative, and its strategy remains focused on maintaining a strong balance sheet, and is well placed to take advantage of opportunities and capitalize on market recovery, widely expected towards the beginning of 2010.

The full press release in English & Arabic can be downloaded here .

The Financial statements can be downloaded here .