Qatar National Bank Q3 Net Profit Jumps 21%

Qatar National Bank (QNB), the largest lender in the Gulf region, reported a 20.8 percent jump in third-quarter net profit on Sunday, Reuters calculated, beating analyst forecasts.

The bank, whose results are viewed as a gauge for the health of Qatar’s wider banking sector, reported a net profit of 2.9 billion riyals ($796.4 million) for the three months to September 30, compared with 2.4 billion riyals in the corresponding period of last year, according to Reuters calculations based on financial statements.

Net interest income increased by 6.4 per cent to reach 9.1 billion riyals, with net fee and commission income and net gain from foreign exchange reaching 1.6 billion and 0.6 billion riyals, respectively, reflecting success in diversifying sources of income.

Six analysts polled by Reuters on average forecast QNB would make a quarterly net profit of 2.57 billion riyals.

In a statement, the bank said its net profit for the first nine months of 2014 was 8 billion riyals, up from 7.1 billion riyals in the same period last year.