Mubasher: Kuwait Financial Centre (Markaz) reported a decrease of 48% in profits during the third quarter of 2018 compared to the same period in the prior year.

Earnings shrank to KWD 1.52 million ($5 million) in Q3-18 from KWD 2.91 million ($9.6 million) in Q3-17, according to a bourse disclosure on Thursday.

During the first nine months of 2018, Markaz registered a decline of 29% in profits to KWD 4.14 million compared to KWD 5.83 million in the corresponding period last year.

The drop in 9M profits is attributed to a decline in the value of investment real estate.

Operating revenues grew by 14% to KWD 15.11 million in 9M-18 from KWD 13.25 million in 9M-17.