Barwa Real Estate Q1 profit nearly halves

Dubai: Qatar’s Barwa Real Estate Co. said first-quarter net profit almost halved to 158.5 million Qatari riyals ($43 million), from 292.5 million riyal a year ago. Earnings per share in the three months ending March 31. amounted to 0.41 riyal, down from 0.75 riyal in the year earlier quarter, Barwa said in a brief statement posted on the Qatar Exchange website. It didn’t give a reason for the decline in profit or any other details related to its first quarter performance. Qatari Diar, the property arm of Qatar Investment Authority, the Arab Gulf state’s sovereign wealth fund, owns a 45 per cent stake in Barwa.