Bank Muscat, Oman's largest lender by market value, beat analyst forecasts and returned to profit in the fourth quarter of 2010, benefiting from a decrease in impairments and growth in loans and deposits.

The bank made a quarterly profit of 29.5 million Omani rials ($75.8 million), Reuters calculated, after posting a net loss of 6.68 million rials in the fourth quarter of 2009.

Analysts polled by Reuters had estimated an average fourth quarter profit of 24.4 million rials. Bank Muscat did not provide quarterly data.

Reuters calculated quarterly earnings from previous financial statements. Bank Muscat reported 2010 full year net profit of 101.7 million rials, up from 73.7 million rials for 2009, a bourse statement said. The nine-month profit was 72.2 million rials.

The lender made 46.6 million rials in impairments in 2010, down 52 percent from 98.2 million in the previous year, the statement said.

Loans and advances rose 4.4 percent in 2010, while deposits jumped 14.7 per cent. Shares in Bank Muscat traded 0.5 per cent higher at 0611 GMT, outperforming the broader index.-Reuters