Oil price slump to start affecting Saudi banks -S&P

The impact of lower oil prices will soon start to weigh on Saudi Arabia's banks, which are likely to see bad loans edge higher by the end of the year, according to Standard & Poor's. Lenders in the kingdom have so far managed to defy many analysts' expectations by posting generally healthy results, despite the roughly 60 percent slide in oil prices since June of last year. The ratings agency said it usually took a few quarters for asset quality issues to surface in a less resilient economy.