DOHA: Commercial Bank of Qatar yesterday announced its financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2014 posting a net profit of QR548m up by about 8.5 percent compared to QR506m for the corresponding period last year.
The operating income increased to QR936m during the first quarter of 2014, up 24.3 percent against QR752.5m in Q1 2013, while the total assets of the bank soared to QR114bn, up 33 percent compared to same period in 2013. ABank (Alternatifbank) delivered net operating income of QR183.5m for the current quarter.
Sheikh Abdullah bin Ali bin Jabor Al Thani, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Commercial Bank, said, “Qatar’s infrastructure investment requirement to support its rapidly diversifying economy under the leadership of the Emir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Qatar is producing positive market conditions for Commercial Bank’s products and services.
“The bank’s wider group strategy is also benefiting from the momentum in public and private sector investment in the UAE, Oman and Turkey driven by positive economic conditions. The bank’s encouraging performance in the first quarter bodes well for the rest of the year.”
Commenting on the financial performance, Hussain Al Fardan, Vice Chairman and Managing Director of Commercial Bank, added: “The momentum of the fourth quarter of 2013 has carried through to the first quarter of 2014 and the bank has delivered good financial results.”
Net interest income was QR620.8m for the quarter ended March 31 2014, 36.8 percent higher than for the same period in 2013, reflecting strong growth in lending activities. ABank contributed QR139.9m, 22.5 percent of the total net interest income. Net interest margin remained stable compared to the fourth quarter of 2013 at 2.6 percent.
Non-interest income was up 5.4 percent to QR315m for the quarter ended March 31, 2014 compared with QR298.7m for the same period in 2013 with ABank contributing QR43.6m. The overall increase in non-interest income was due to higher fee and commission income and was partially offset by lower income from investments securities.
Total operating expenses were up 66.8 percent to QR 406.9m compared with QR 244m for the same period in 2013. Excluding ABank, expenses increased by 10 percent for the current quarter compared to the same period in 2013 as Commercial Bank continued to invest in its people and infrastructure. The Peninsula
