São Paulo – Banks from the Gulf countries posted a record net profit of USD 15.6 billion in the first quarter of this year, according to a survey conducted by the Kuwaiti consultancy Kamco Invest. The result represents an 8.6% increase year-on-year and a 7.1% rise compared to the previous quarter.
According to the report, this growth in net profit is the result of reduced operating costs for financial institutions, increased non-interest income, and a decrease in provisions for potential losses, such as loan defaults. The profit increase was recorded even during a period of falling interest rates.
“At the country level, the q-o-q growth remained largely positive with five out of six country aggregates showing a sequential growth in net income while the aggregate for the Kuwaiti banking sector showed a marginal decline,” the document reads.
The revenue of banks from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)’s country aggregates reached USD 34.6 billion in the first quarter, a 0.04% increase compared to the previous period due to declines in revenues from banks in Kuwait and Oman, which were, however, offset by the performance of banks from the other countries in the group consisting of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.
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Translated by Guilherme Miranda
