ID :
121034
Sun, 05/09/2010 - 14:04
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/121034
The shortlink copeid
UAE national banks return to growth
Abu Dhabi, May 9, 2010 (WAM)- UAE national banks boosted their net income by around 0.8 per cent in the first quarter of 2010 to reverse a profit slump through 2009 according to a report in 'Emirates Business.'
The banks' profit were affected by the global fiscal crisis and high provision allocation for bad debt last year.
Balance sheets of 14 listed banks that have released quarterly results showed their combined net earnings stood at Dh4.95 billion in the first quarter of 2010 compared with Dh4.91bn in the first quarter of 2009.
Dubai's Emirates NBD netted the highest profits of around Dh1.11bn in the first quarter of 2010, much below its net income of Dh1.25bn in the first quarter of last year, its quarterly report showed.
The government-controlled National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD), the second largest bank in the UAE after ENBD, reported the highest profit growth of around 33.7 per cent to Dh1.03bn from Dh770.4 million in the same period last year.
Another bank reporting high growth was the Abu Dhabi-based First Gulf Bank (FGB), which recorded an increase of about 22.7 per cent to Dh920.5m in the first quarter of 2010 from Dh750.9m in the first quarter of 2009.
A breakdown showed seven of the 14 banks recorded growth in their net profits while the rest reported lower earnings.
Besides NBAD and FGB, the gainers included the Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (Adib), Commercial Bank of Dubai (CBD), Union National Bank (UNB), Bank of Sharjah (BoS) and National Bank of Fujairah (NBF).
Banks with lower profits were InvestBank, Sharjah Islamic Bank (SIB), National Bank of Umm Al Qaiwain (NBQ), ENBD, the Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB), Mashreq Bank, and Commercial Bank International (CBI).
The banks' results were in line with expectations by local financial analysts, who had forecast a slight improvement in the banks' year-on-year performance but higher profit growth compared with the previous quarter. "These results had been expected but I think they are good," said Fadi Kiswani of the Sharjah-based Sharhan Securities.
"This is because the profits in the first quarter of 2009 were higher than those in the first quarter of 2008, which is considered a boom period for banks. I think the financial results of the banks for this quarter are sound considering the high provisions they are taking."
Central Bank figures showed UAE banks were still building up non-performing loans (NPL) provisions at the expense of their net income albeit at a lower rate.
The figures showed the collective NPL provisions of the UAE's 24 national banks and 28 foreign units stood at around Dh1bn in the first quarter of 2010 compared with nearly Dh4.8bn in the fourth quarter of 2009. Provisions stood at around Dh2.1bn in the first quarter of 2009 and peaked at Dh12.9bn through the year, according to the Central Bank.
The record provisions through 2009, triggered by bank exposures to the downturn in real estate and to two troubled Saudi businesses, largely weighed on the net earnings of banks despite their generally strong performance. Balance sheets of 16 listed national banks showed their net profits dipped by 20.6 per cent to Dh14.87bn in 2009 from Dh18.71bn in 2008.
In the first quarter of 2009, their earnings edged up by nearly 0.07 per cent to Dh5.41bn from Dh5.406bn in the first quarter of 2008.
The banks' profit were affected by the global fiscal crisis and high provision allocation for bad debt last year.
Balance sheets of 14 listed banks that have released quarterly results showed their combined net earnings stood at Dh4.95 billion in the first quarter of 2010 compared with Dh4.91bn in the first quarter of 2009.
Dubai's Emirates NBD netted the highest profits of around Dh1.11bn in the first quarter of 2010, much below its net income of Dh1.25bn in the first quarter of last year, its quarterly report showed.
The government-controlled National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD), the second largest bank in the UAE after ENBD, reported the highest profit growth of around 33.7 per cent to Dh1.03bn from Dh770.4 million in the same period last year.
Another bank reporting high growth was the Abu Dhabi-based First Gulf Bank (FGB), which recorded an increase of about 22.7 per cent to Dh920.5m in the first quarter of 2010 from Dh750.9m in the first quarter of 2009.
A breakdown showed seven of the 14 banks recorded growth in their net profits while the rest reported lower earnings.
Besides NBAD and FGB, the gainers included the Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (Adib), Commercial Bank of Dubai (CBD), Union National Bank (UNB), Bank of Sharjah (BoS) and National Bank of Fujairah (NBF).
Banks with lower profits were InvestBank, Sharjah Islamic Bank (SIB), National Bank of Umm Al Qaiwain (NBQ), ENBD, the Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB), Mashreq Bank, and Commercial Bank International (CBI).
The banks' results were in line with expectations by local financial analysts, who had forecast a slight improvement in the banks' year-on-year performance but higher profit growth compared with the previous quarter. "These results had been expected but I think they are good," said Fadi Kiswani of the Sharjah-based Sharhan Securities.
"This is because the profits in the first quarter of 2009 were higher than those in the first quarter of 2008, which is considered a boom period for banks. I think the financial results of the banks for this quarter are sound considering the high provisions they are taking."
Central Bank figures showed UAE banks were still building up non-performing loans (NPL) provisions at the expense of their net income albeit at a lower rate.
The figures showed the collective NPL provisions of the UAE's 24 national banks and 28 foreign units stood at around Dh1bn in the first quarter of 2010 compared with nearly Dh4.8bn in the fourth quarter of 2009. Provisions stood at around Dh2.1bn in the first quarter of 2009 and peaked at Dh12.9bn through the year, according to the Central Bank.
The record provisions through 2009, triggered by bank exposures to the downturn in real estate and to two troubled Saudi businesses, largely weighed on the net earnings of banks despite their generally strong performance. Balance sheets of 16 listed national banks showed their net profits dipped by 20.6 per cent to Dh14.87bn in 2009 from Dh18.71bn in 2008.
In the first quarter of 2009, their earnings edged up by nearly 0.07 per cent to Dh5.41bn from Dh5.406bn in the first quarter of 2008.
