RIYADH, Aug. 12 (Xinhua) -- The Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco) announced on Monday that its net income for the first half of 2019 slipped to 46.9 billion U.S. dollars, a nearly 12-percent decrease year-on-year.
In a press release, the Saudi oil giant said its net income for the same period of last year was 53 billion dollars, attributing this year's decline to the lower oil prices.
However, the company witnessed a slight increase in its half-year free cash flow, which was 38 billion dollars, compared to 35.6 billion dollars for the same period in 2018.
Amin H. Nasser, president and CEO of Saudi Aramco, expressed optimism for the operational performance of his company.
"Despite lower oil prices during the first half of 2019, we continued to deliver solid earnings and strong free cash flow underpinned by our consistent operational performance, cost management and fiscal discipline," he said.
It's the first time that the Saudi company has released its half-year financial results, which Nasser described as "a significant milestone in Saudi Aramco's history."