Kuwait Finance House (KFH), the country's biggest Islamic lender, reported a 13.3 per cent rise in second-quarter net profit according to a statement on Tuesday, broadly in line with analysts' forecasts.

Net profit rose to KD36.77 million ($121.59 million) in the three months to the end of June, from KD32.45 million in the same period a year ago, the statement said.

Three analysts polled by Reuters had forecast the lender would make a quarterly net profit of KD36.06 million.

The results were boosted by higher finance income, which rose to KD176.04 million in the quarter, from KD164.76 million in the same period of last year. Investment income and fee and commission income also climbed over the same timeframe.

This helped to offset a 16.3 per cent rise in impairments, the bank added without disclosing how much cash it set aside for bad debts during the period. – Reuters