Profit up at EBG, but dip at the Bank of Kuwait and the Middle East

Published August 6th, 2000 - 03:00 GMT

The Emirates Bank Group has announced that its profits for the first half of 2000 reached $69.64 million, an increase of 75 percent relative to net profits during the same period last year. The bank's earnings per share for the first six months of 2000 stood at $0.23 up from $0.14 in the first half of 1999.

Growth in EBG’s total assets was attributed to property rental receivables that reached $48 million at the end of June 2000 relative, up from zero during the first half of 1999. Total assets rose to $6.21 billion, compared with $5.6 billion in corresponding period of 1999.

The growth in profits was also due to lower provisions for losses on advances that fell by more than $14.2 million. Provisions for investments, however, rose from $68 thousand to $1.45 million. Another contributing factor to the rise in profits was higher interest income, which rose from $180.83 million to $215.66 million, in addition to higher fees and commissions.

Total income increased by 21 percent, from $180.13 million to $130.91 million. Net profit before tax rose to $73.39 million compared to $41.23 million in the corresponding period of the 1999.

On the other hand, The Bank of Kuwait and the Middle East announced that its net profits fell 3.7 percent lower $22.88 million in the first half of 2000, when compared to the corresponding period in 1999. Operational profits, however, rose 12 percent to $28.23 million, and shareholders' equity dropped nearly 1 percentage point, from 11.58 percent at the end of June 1999 to 10.7 percent during the same period last year.