Local banks post strong results in Q1

The Shanghai Pudong Development Bank and the Bank of Communications have reported strong growth in profit and revenue for the first quarter.

SPDB said late Monday net profit attributed to shareholders jumped 27 percent and revenue rose 15 percent from the same period a year earlier to 50 billion yuan (US$7.4 billion) and 16.4 billion yuan.

The double-digit growth was attributed to structural adjustment of business lines and better risk management.

As of the end of March, SPDB's total liabilities were up 4.2 percent compared with the beginning of the year, at 6 trillion yuan. Over half of that came from a 9.6-percent growth in deposits.

Boosted by strong growth in both retail and corporate banking, the SPDB attracted 3.5 trillion yuan of deposits during the reporting period. SPDB said its retail deposits hit a record high of more than 700 billion yuan.

And its non-performing loan ratio fell 0.04 percentage points from the beginning of 2019 to 1.88 percent. The amount of bad loans dropped 85 million yuan.

The bank has adopted measures to strengthen risk management, including more precise risk policy guidance and a risk quota management system for corporate clients.

The Bank of Communications made a net profit of 21 billion yuan in Q1, up 4.9 percent year on year. The growth was “significantly higher” than the same periods over the past three years.

Net operating income was 62 billion yuan, up 26.2 percent, the quarterly earnings report showed.

The bank’s non-performing loan ratio was 1.47 percent, down two basis points from the beginning of the year. BoCom has focused on preventing risk and improving efficiency in resolving existing risks.

The bank's balance of loans was 5 trillion yuan at the end of the first quarter, up 4.4 percent from the beginning of the year. In addition, loans for private enterprises increased by 27.9 billion yuan since January, indicating more support for the real economy and those with hunger for capital.