SABIC beat analysts' forecasts with net profit of SR8.10 billion ($2.16 billion) in the three months to end-June, compared with SR5.02 billion a year earlier.
Analysts surveyed by Reuters on average had expected a net profit of SR7.1 billion for the quarter.
In a statement on the bourse website on Saturday, the company attributed the rise in profit to increases in production and sales and higher prices for most of its products.
"The main reason for the second-quarter profit increase compared to the same period a year earlier is increased sales and improved prices of some products," the statement said.
The gross operating profit for the quarter amounted to SR16.49 billion compared to the same quarter in 2010 of SR11.85 billion, representing an increase of 39 percent, the statement said.
The net income for the six months ended June 30, amounts to SR15.79 billion compared to the net income of SR10.45 billion for the same period in the preceding year, an increase of 51 percent.
Operational profit for the second-quarter rose by 45 percent to SR13.3 billion.
The company proposed a dividend of SR2 per share for the first half of 2011.
Mohamed Al-Mady, vice chairman and CEO of SABIC, explained that the distribution of cash dividends is based on the company's keenness for shareholders to realize remunerative returns.
SABIC shares rose 0.24 percent higher to close at SR104.
The Tadawul All-Share Index (TASI) increased 0.22 percent to 6,523.01 on Saturday.
