Saudi's Al Rajhi Bank posts 18% rise in Q1 profit

Saudi-based Al Rajhi Bank, the kingdom's biggest Islamic lender, on Tuesday it posted an 18 percent rise in first-quarter net profit due to an increase in operational income, but it missed analysts' forecasts. Earnings for the three months ended March 31 rose to SR2.01bn ($536m) from SR1.70bn a year earlier, the bank said in a statement posted on the website of the Saudi bourse. Analysts surveyed by Reuters had expected SR2.09bn on average. The bank had net profits of SR1.9bn in the last quarter of 2011. Operational income rose 16.7 percent to SR3.43bn, net income from finance and investments rose 4.3 percent to SR2.33bn and total assets at the end of the period were SR234bn, compared to SR203bn a year earlier. In March, the bank's board accepted the resignation of its chief executive, Abdullah al-Rajhi, replacing him with Suleiman al-Zain.