#Saudi lender NCB's quarterly profit rises 3.5 pct | Reuters

Saudi lender NCB's quarterly profit rises 3.5 pct | Reuters:

Saudi Arabia’s National Commercial Bank (NCB), the country’s largest lender, saw a 3.5 percent rise in fourth-quarter net profit, according to Reuters calculations, while its annual profit met analysts’ forecasts.

The bank, which is in merger talks with Riyad Bank , made a net profit of 2.65 billion riyals ($706.6 million) in the three months to Dec. 31, up from 2.56 billion riyals in the same period of 2017, Reuters calculated from financial statements in the absence of a quarterly breakdown.

It is the second Saudi bank to report earnings results after Samba Financial Group, which made a net profit of 1.41 billion riyals in the period, up from 1.21 billion riyals in the same period of last year, Reuters calculated from financial statements in the absence of a quarterly breakdown.