Saudi’s Samba bank 2018 profit up 10%, meets forecasts

Samba Financial Group, Saudi Arabia’s third-largest bank by assets, reported a 10 per cent rise in 2018 net profit on Wednesday, in line with analysts’ forecasts.

The bank made a profit of SAR5.53bn ($1.47bn) for the year, up from SAR5.02bn in the same period a year earlier, it said in a bourse statement.

The average of eight analysts polled forecast the bank would make a net profit of SAR5.59bn, according to Refinitiv data.

The bank attributed its increase in profit to a 7.3 per cent climb in net special commission income and other operating income. It was helped by an 8.4 per cent fall in operating expenses due to a slide in salary costs, depreciation expenses, credit costs and other expenses.