Commercial Bank of Qatar Net Profit Falls 15.3%, Misses Forecasts

Commercial Bank of Qatar , the Gulf Arab state’s second-largest lender by assets, posted a 15.3 per cent drop in first-quarter profit on Wednesday as the bank set aside more cash to cover bad loans.

The bank earned a net attributable profit of SAR452.3 million ($127.1 million) for the three months to March 31, it said in a bourse filing. That compares with a profit of SAR533.9 million in the corresponding period of 2014.

Six analysts had forecast an average quarterly profit of SAR546.9 million, according to a Reuters poll.

Net provisions for loans in the first quarter reached SAR170.2 million, rising from SAR50.8 million in the same period of last year, according to a separate statement from the bank.