RIYADH, 11 October — The Saudi American Bank has announced a profit of SR1.679 billion for the nine months ended Sept. 2001, registering a 12 percent increase over the corresponding period last year. Profits for the third quarter were SR570 million.
In a press release issued yesterday, SAMBA said profits for the third quarter were ten percent higher than those for the same period last year. Earnings per share for the nine months were SR20.98 (SR18.76 last year).
The total operating income for the nine months ended Sept. 30 was nine percent higher than the corresponding period last year. Operating expenses were reduced by net recoveries of non-performing loans of SR51 million and increased by three percent.
Regarding the revenue-expenditure ratio, it said the bank earned SR3 for every SR1 that it spent. Its annualized return on average assets for the period was 2.9 percent, and the return on average equity 25.3 percent.
Loans and advances as on Sept. 30 were up 6.6 percent over last year, with strong growth in the consumer and small business sectors.
Customer deposits increased by 4.2 percent over the same period last year.
ARABIC profits dip
Meanwhile, Al-Rajhi Banking and Investment Corp. (ARABIC), one of the largest expanding banking units in Saudi Arabia, said yesterday its profits in the first nine months of 2001 dropped 10.9 percent.
ARABIC posted net profits of 1,267.7 million riyals ($338 million) to Sept. 30 this year, compared to 1,422.9 million riyals ($379.4 million) in the same period last year, the bank said in a statement. But total assets increased seven percent from $13 billion on Sept. 30, 2000 to $13.92 billion at the end of September this year.
General Manager Abdullah Al-Rajhi attributed the drop in profits to the unfavorable conditions in world markets.
The Kingdom’s largest bank in term of assets, National Commercial Bank (NCB), said its net profits in the first nine months of this year had soared 31.7 percent over the same period last year.
NCB Chairman Abdullah Bahamdan said profits rose to 1,730 million riyals ($461.3 million) from 1,314 million riyals ($350.4 million).
He attributed the rise in profits to a sharp increase in the bank’s credit facilities in the last three months. Bahamdan said total assets edged up 1.6 percent to 96.5 billion riyals ($25.7 billion) at the end of September 2001 from 94.9 billion riyals ($25.3 billion) in the corresponding period last year.
