The Commercial Bank of Qatar (CBQ) has announced operating profits of 116 million Qatari riyals ($31.86 million) for the six months period, which ended June 30, 2002. There results are compared to QR72.29 million operating profits earned for the same period in 2001, an increase of 60.46 percent.
After provisions of QR40.68 million, CBQ achieved net profits for the half-year of QR75.32 million, an increase of 32.3 percent on the restated QR 56.9 million for the same period in 2001. Interim adjusted earnings per share increased to QR3.17 from QR2.40 for the six months, a jump of 32 percent.
“Despite lackluster trading conditions elsewhere and the turmoil on global stock markets, CBQ has been able to build on the successes of 2001 and can take some measure of satisfaction from these half-year results,” said Hussain Al-Fardan, CBQ managing director.
“We have set out to build on the strengths of our various domestic franchises. Assets are up strongly, particularly net loans and advances and customer deposits which showed increases of 26.7 and 25.2 percent respectively,” he added.
CBQ’s total assets rose by 22.9 percent overall. Annualized returns on average equity, and on average assets, outturned at 22.44 percent and 2.82 percent respectively, while the bank’s capital adequacy ratio stood at 12.22 percent.
“We have just completed one of the most far-reaching organizational reforms in the sub-context of a major program of change, running these last nine months. We are well positioned to grow and to support the future growth and development of the State of Qatar,” concluded Al-Fardan.
Commercial Bank of Qatar (CBQ) has been designated the "Highest Rated Qatari Bank" by Moody's, the credit rating agency, for six consecutive years, and "Best Bank in Qatar" by Euromoney, the respected international finance publication. The Bank offers retail/personal and investment banking and was the first bank to offer an Internet home banking service in Qatar.
The Commercial Bank of Qatar was established in 1975, as the first wholly owned private commercial bank in Qatar. The bank has 13 sales offices, 34 Automated Teller Machines (ATM) and the largest Point of Service (POS) network in the country. — (menareport.com)
© 2002 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
