Agricultural Bank of China 3Q net profit up 1% but bad loan ratio up too
Agricultural Bank of China - 3Q 2015 net profit of RMB 48.9bn ($7.7bn), up 1% YoY, just beating estimates, however, non-performing loan ratio increased to 2.02% at the end of September from 1.83% at end-June, making that a fifth consecutive quarterly increase.

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THE Agricultural Bank of China yesterday said net profit grew 0.57 percent year on year to 153.4 billion yuan (US$24 billion) in the first nine months.

The growth improved from a 0.5 percent rise in the first half. Net interest income, which is the biggest profit contributor for most Chinese banks, added 3.44 percent to 328.7 billion yuan for the nine months ended on September 30. Net non-interest income rose to 48.9 billion yuan from 47 billion yuan due to fee-generated businesses and Internet banking, the lender said.

The bad loan ratio of AgBank, the first of the nation’s five biggest lenders to report third-quarter earnings, rose to 2.02 percent through September from 1.83 percent at the end of June amid a weak manufacturing sector due to an economic downturn. The bank’s non-performing loans worsened to 179.2 billion yuan in the same period.

The Beijing-based bank had tried to increase loans to mid- and small-sized firms in the third quarter to counteract the impact of narrowing net interest margin, according to the lender’s Shanghai branch, citing a 90 billion yuan lending it granted.

China Construction Bank and the Bank of China will release results on Thursday, while the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China will report next Friday.