KUWAIT: National Bank of Kuwait , booked 23.5 million dinars ($81.29 million) of provisions in the second quarter and expects a tougher second half, its chief executive said on Wednesday. "As for specific provisions, we booked around 5.5 million dinars. Of course there were other provisions of around 18 million dinars against investments," Ibrahim Dabdoub told Al Arabiya television. NBK, Kuwait's biggest lender, posted a 10 percent rise in second-quarter net profit on Tuesday to 68.9 million dinars, driven by growth outside the country. Dabdoub said the forecast he made in May of posting $1 billion of net profit in 2010 was still standing, but the second half of the year would be tougher because public spending has so far fallen short of expectations. "God willing, after September, there will be demand on loans and we expect to make the $one billion if we continue at the same pace," he said. The lender eyes expansion in Syria where the bank has no presence, and Turkey, where its presence is "small", he said.
