Samba Financial Group, Saudi Arabia's third-largest bank by assets, reported a 1.4 percent drop in first-quarter net profit on Tuesday, in line with analyst forecasts. The bank made a profit of 1.26 billion riyals ($336.1 million) in the three months to March 31, down from 1.28 billion riyals in the same period a year earlier, it said in a bourse statement.
Four analysts polled by Reuters had on average forecast the bank would make a quarterly net profit of 1.22 billion riyals.
The bank attributed the slight profit drop to lower income from investments, plus reduced trading income and fees from banking services.
Quarterly operating income fell 2.5 percent year on year to 1.92 billion riyals, although profits from special commissions increased 11 percent over the same timeframe to 1.25 billion riyals, which offset some of the drop in operating income.
Saudi companies issue brief earnings statements early in the reporting period before publishing more detailed results later.
Analysts expect Saudi banks to feel greater pressure from lower oil prices in 2016 in the form of an increase in bad loans - albeit from low levels - and more modest credit growth.
Loans and advances at March-end were 132.4 billion riyals, up 4.2 percent on the same point of 2015, and deposits rose 6.1 percent to 178.3 billion riyals over the same period.
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