Kuwait's NBK Q1 net profit rises 20 pct to $264 mln

* username: rupertbu

The lender posted a net profit of 63.5 million Kuwaiti dinars ($221.1 million) in the first quarter of 2009.

Analysts surveyed by Reuters had expected NBK's first-quarter net profit to range between 75 million and 87 million dinars. [ID:nLDE63A03C]

As of the end of March, NBK Group's total assets were up 5.9 percent to $44.1 billion, whereas total shareholders' equity increased by 17.4 percent to $6.2 billion, the company said in a statement.