Bank Muscat Q4 profit falls 83% to R03.6m

Bank Muscat posted an 83 per cent fall in fourth-quarter net profit to RO3.6 million (Dh34m), missing analysts' forecasts.

The bank's full-year profit rose 11.2 per cent to RO93.7m, compared to RO84.26m in 2007, Bank Muscat said in a statement, without giving quarterly data, which was calculated from previous financial statements.

Analysts' forecasts for Bank Muscat's quarterly profit ranged from RO24.03m and RO30.2m in a net profit survey last month. The average forecast was for a 24.6 per cent rise in profit. Bank Muscat earned RO90.11m in the first nine months of 2008 and RO21.64m in the fourth quarter of 2007. Bank Muscat warned earlier it could book RO26.9m in impairment losses on investments, weighing on its earnings.

Follow Emirates 24|7 on Google News.