KUWAIT, 9 April 2005 — National Bank of Kuwait (NBK), the Arab world’s fourth-largest bank, said yesterday first-quarter net profit rose 39 percent to a record 44.3 million dinars ($152 million), with all units performing well.
Kuwait’s biggest bank said profit rose from 31.9 million dinars in the first three months of 2004, with earnings per share up to 27 fils from 20 fils. NBK said its return on equity and return on assets rose to 3.3 percent and 32 percent, respectively.
“NBK’s fundamental strengths made us well positioned to take full advantage of a favorable environment and rising interest rates,” Chief Executive Officer Ibrahim Dabdoub said.
“We were able to leverage our strong financial standing and liquidity to selectively pursue growth opportunities, while maintaining our discipline in managing liabilities, costs and risks,” added Dabdoub.
The big net profit increase can also be attributed to the diversification of NBK income sources, added Dabdoub. “All lines of business did well, both domestically and overseas,” he said. “We achieved improved margins, higher fee income and strategically focused growth across our business activities, from lending and trade finance to wealth management and advisory services.”
NBK currently has branches in New York, London, Paris, Geneva, Lebanon, Jordan, Bahrain, Qatar and Singapore, while its 47 local branches give it the largest such network in Kuwait.
NBK’s total assets were $18.9 billion at the end of 2004, after its 2004 net profit rose 24 percent to $515 million. Shares in NBK eased 20 fils at 1.360 dinars on the Kuwait Stock Exchange on Wednesday, the end of the trading week in the Gulf Arab state.
