Banking on better payouts from Qatar - The National

Regional investors will be eyeing Qatar's banks this week.

Qatar National Bank (QNB), the country's biggest lender by assets, reported on Tuesday a 32 per cent increase in profit to 7.5 billion rials - but its proposed 40 per cent cash dividend has disappointed investors, sending the shares 5.2 per cent lower, the biggest one-day drop since 2009.

No wonder investors are eagerly awaiting the fourth-quarter earnings reports from Qatar's other banks.

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