Saudi's Al-Rajhi Bank Q1 falls on provisions

* username: rupertbu

Saudi Arabia's Al-Rajhi Bank 1120.SE, the Gulf region's largest Islamic bank by market value, on Sunday said first-quarter net profit fell 2.8 percent, below analysts' forecasts, as provisions continue to weigh.

The Islamic bank posted a net profit of 1.684 billion riyals ($439 million) in the three months to end March 31, down from 1.732 billion riyals in the year-earlier period.

The bank cited the its conservative policy for taking provisions as a reason for the decline, without providing further details.