Arab Bank Group reported net income after tax of $152.1 million for the first half of 2020 compared $453.2 million for the same period of the previous year. Customer deposits grew by 5 per cent to reach $35.9 billion compared to $34.1 billion in the previous year, while loans grew by 2 per cent to reach $26.7 billion compared to $26.2 billion. The pandemic has come as a shock for the global economy, which will witness contraction in 2020 and will, continue to have a material impact on businesses around the world and the economic environments in which they operate
The group’s net operating income dropped by 21 per cent, and the bank opted to build significantly more provisions during the first half of 2020 against the financial implications of Covid-19, and that this has resulted in the drop in the reported net income after tax. Growth in the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council declined sharply due to the plunge in oil prices since the outbreak of the pandemic.