RIYADH: Saudi National Bank, the Kingdom’s largest lender, posted a 42 percent surge in profit to SR14 billion ($3.8 billion) for the first nine months of 2022. This is against the SR10 billion profit the bank had reported in the corresponding period last year, a bourse filing showed. In response to the results, the bank’s shares opened 1.37 percent higher on Sunday at SR66.60. Later in the day, the stock price slightly retreated to close at SR65.90. The profit hike came as total operating profit surged 17 percent to SR25 billion from SR21 billion during the same period a year ago. SNB also linked the strong figures to a 12 percent drop in expenses, mostly due to reduced impairment charges.