JEDDAH: Five other listed Saudi banks reported lower-third quarter earnings which they blamed mainly on higher provisions. The National Commercial Bank (NCB) posted a 6 increase in net income for the nine months of 2010 at SR3,468 million over the same period of last year, the bank said in a statement. NCB chairman Sheikh Abdullah Bahamdan said rising profitability affirms the bank's ability to deploy effectively its funds and to diversify its sources of revenue. He added that the bank generated growth in its core activities for nine months. Net special commission income grew by 2.9 percent, fee income by 2.2 percent, loans and advances by 5.2 percent to reach SR122.6 billion in the third quarter compared with the same period of last year. customer deposits rose by 8.4 percent to reach SR215 billion. Total assets grew by 7.2 percent to SR271.2 billion and shareholders' equity by 7.5 percent to SR30.9 billion. However, Samba Financial Group posted a 8.8 percent drop in third-quarter net profit after a decline in lending income. The bank made SR1.1 billion ($294.1 million) in the three months to end-September, compared with SR1.21 billion in the same period a year ago, the bank said in a statement. Net lending income fell 14.4 percent to SR1.11 billion in the third quarter. Likewise, Riyad Bank posted a 19.5 percent fall in third-quarter net profit. The bank made SR611 million ($162.9 million) in the three months to Sept. 30, compared to SR759 million a year earlier, it said in a statement. Moreover, the Saudi British Bank (SABB) recorded a net profit of SR1,487 million ($397 million) for the nine months ended 30 September 2010 - a reduction of SR519 million ($138 million), or 25.9 percent, compared with SR2,006 million ($535 million) for the same period in 2009. Net special commission income decreased by SR116 million ($31.0.million), or 4.4 percent, compared with the same period in 2009, reflecting a contraction in average asset balances. Banque Saudi Fransi (BSF) reported a 13-percent drop in third quarter profits to SR621 million ($165.6 million) compared with SR714 million for 2009. The fall came despite a 2.6-percent rise in operating income to SR1.808 billion.
