Kuwait Business: GCC banks post interest income of $18.6bn in Q3: Kamco – Gulf Digital News

Kuwait Business: GCC banks post interest income of $18.6bn in Q3: Kamco – Gulf Digital News

Net interest income for listed banks in the GCC reached a record quarterly level at $18.6 billion during the third quarter (Q3) of 2022 compared to $17.2 billion during Q2-2022, a report said.

The sequential increase was broad-based and was seen across the GCC, added Kuwait-based financial powerhouse Kamco Invest in its “GCC Banking Sector Report – Nov 2022”.

On the other hand, non-interest income dropped to a four-quarter low of $7.4 billion during Q3-2022 as compared to $7.8 billion during Q2-2022 reflecting a slide in global and regional financial markets during the quarter.

Aggregate lending in the GCC remained strong during the quarter. Central bank data showed Kuwaiti banks seeing double digit growth in outstanding credit facilities during the quarter while Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Omani banks registered low single-digit growths.

The Credit survey from UAE central banks also showed strong lending during the quarter. On the other hand, the Qatari banking sector was an exception showing a marginal decline in lending during the quarter.

Data on listed banks also showed growth with aggregate GCC gross loans reaching a new record of $1.93 trillion, increasing by 1.2% or $23.5 billion during the quarter.

Outstanding net loan witnessed a slightly smaller growth of 1.1% during the