| Kippreport.com

Commercial Bank of Qatar Q1 Profit Rises 5.6 Percent

April 23, 2012 9:17 by kippreport

The Commercial Bank of Qatar (CBQ) posted a 5.6 percent jump in first quarter profit on Sunday on increased lending and deposits, but still fell shy of analysts’ average forecast.

Qatar’s third-largest lender by market capitalisation earned 471 million riyals ($129.5 million), the company said in a statement, up from 446 million riyals a year earlier.

Analysts, on average, had forecast a quarterly profit of 486.8 million riyals, according to a Reuters poll.

Loans and advances grew 21 percent to 42 billion riyals, while deposits grew 25 percent to 37.9 billion riyals, the lender said. Total assets increased 15 percent to 69.9 billion riyals.

Net provisions for loans and advances fell 16 percent in the first quarter to 45 million riyals, which include an additional provision taken in relation to a domestic Islamic corporate account.

Net interest income grew 33 million riyals to 478 million riyals in the first quarter of 2012 despite pressure on both asset and deposit pricing, it said.

“During the remainder of the year we will look to build on our strong asset quality and to develop and diversify our lending and our income streams,” said managing director Hussain Al Farda in a statement. “The bank is well capitalised and positioned to target new opportunities as they arise.”

Earlier this month, CBQ launched a $500 million five-year bond. In February it signed a $455 million term loan with a club of seven regional and international banks, with the cash to be used for general corporate purposes, the bank said, without giving further detail on tenor or pricing.

Banks in Qatar are expected to benefit as the world’s fastest growing economy spends more on infrastructure as it prepares to host the 2022 World Cup.

Tags: CBQ, Economy, finances, Q1 net profit, Qatar