Riyad Bank Q1 net rises 8.3pc

Jeddah, April 9, 2011

Riyad Bank, a leading Saudi bank, said on Saturday its first quarter net profit rose 8.3 per cent on the back of improved income from banking services and other operations.

The bank made a net profit of SR741 million ($197.6 million) in the three months to March 31, compared to SR684 million in the same period a year earlier, it said in a statement on Saudi Arabia's bourse website.

Total operating profit for the period rose 3.9 per cent to SR1.53 billion from SR1.47 billion in the first quarter of last year, it said.

Assets for the three months period climbed to SR180.72 million from SR174.29 million while investments increased to SR38.7 million from SR32.23 million in the same period last year.

Loans and advances rose 2.9 per cent to 109.36 million riyals, it said. The bank's share price closed 0.4 per cent higher in earlier trade on Saturday, in line with the kingdom's bourse which edged up 0.5 per cent.-Reuters

Tags: Riyad Bank | Saudi bank |