UPDATE 2-Kuwait's NBK bank Q1 profit a record on foreign buys

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By Rania El Gamal and Ulf Laessing

KUWAIT, April 12 (Reuters) - National Bank of Kuwait (NBKK.KW: Quote, Profile, Research) (NBK), the Gulf's third-largest lender by market value, posted record profit in the first quarter helped by income from its foreign operations.

Net income in the three months to March 31 jumped 28 percent to 82 million dinars ($308.5 million), compared with 64 million dinars in the year-earlier period, the bank said in a statement.

Operating income rose 30 percent to 134.3 million dinars, and return on average assets was 2.87 percent, the bank said.

"The strong results of the first quarter reflect continued growth in all lines of business and the strength of our operations and franchise," NBK Chief Executive Ibrahim Dabdoub said in the statement.

"They also confirm the merits of our growth strategies emphasising regional expansion," he said.

Kuwait's Global Investment House expected first quarter profit of 74 million dinars, according to a Reuters survey last month. [ID:nL31538445]

Naser al-Nafisi, general manager at the al-Joman Center for Economic Consultancy in Kuwait, said NBK was benefiting from an expansion in the Middle East to counter growing competition at home, where it controls 40 percent of the market.