* NBAD Q2 profit 1.05 bln dirhams vs 1.03 bln dirhams yr-ago
* H1 net profit 2.08 bln dhs vs 1.95 bln dhs in H1 2011
* Higher net interest income drove profit growth
* Outlook remains unchanged for earnings, NPLs
(Adds details)
DUBAI, July 24 (Reuters) - National Bank of Abu Dhabi
, the largest lender by market value in the United Arab
Emirates, reported a 2-percent rise in quarterly profit on
Tuesday due to higher net interest income, meeting forecasts.
NBAD had second-quarter net profit of 1.05 billion dirhams
($284.8 million), up from 1.03 billion dirhams in the same
period a year earlier, the bank said in a statement.
Analysts had forecast an average profit of 1.031 billion
dirhams in a Reuters poll.
Net profit for the first half of the year rose 6.9 percent
to 2.08 billion dirhams compared to 1.95 billion dirhams in the
opening six months of 2011.
The improvement in top-line revenue was due to higher net
interest income and net income from Islamic financing contracts,
the bank said, which grew 4.6 percent in the first half of 2012
compared to the same period last year.
"The group has not changed its forecasts for 2012," said
Chief Executive Michael Tomalin who is slated to retire this
year. "Assuming continuing current market conditions, (we
expect) mid to high single digit growth in earnings for the year
with non-performing loans peaking round 3.75 percent of
performing loans by year end or early 2013,"
The bank booked net impairment charges of 292 million
dirhams in the three months to June 30, a drop of 12 percent on
the same period last year. Provisions for the first six months
of 2012 were down 13.2 percent due to lower collective
provisions and strong recoveries, the statement said.
Non-performing loans increased to 5.34 billion dirhams,
accounting for 3.18 percent of the loan book. At the end of the
second quarter of 2011, they stood at 4.17 billion dirhams, or
2.65 percent of the loan book.
Operating income for the quarter reached 2.07 billion
dirhams, up 3.2 percent over the same period last year. The
corresponding period of 2011 yielded 2 billion dirhams.
Loans and advances grew to 162.8 billion dirhams at the end
of the second quarter, up 2.1 percent on the end of 2011 and 6.4
percent on the same point last year.
Short-term government deposits worth 27.2 billion dirhams,
which had been placed with NBAD in the first quarter, were
withdrawn in the second, meaning a 14.5 percent
quarter-on-quarter slump in deposits at the bank.
Compared to the end of 2011, deposits were up 5.7 percent to
162.8 billion dirhams.
($1 = 3.6730 UAE dirhams)
(Editing by Amran Abocar)