RIYADH, 14 July 2003 — National Commercial Bank (NCB), the largest bank in Saudi Arabia, announced yesterday a 7.1 percent rise in net profits for the first six months of 2003 compared to the same period last year. NCB posted profits of SR1.5 billion ($400 million) compared to SR1.4 billion ($373.3 million) in the first half of 2002, making it the most profitable Saudi bank this year. Last year’s profits included some $61 million of “exceptional capital gains,” the bank said in a statement. NCB Chairman Abdullah Bahamdan said total assets grew by 8.8 percent to $29.6 billion on June 30 this year from $27.2 billion in the corresponding period last year. He said customer deposits in the first six months rose by 10.9 percent to $23.4 billion from $21.1 billion.
