Krung Thai Bank annual profit jumps

Krungthai Bank annual profit jumps 27%

PUBLISHED : 2019





Krungthai Bank reported a 27% jump in annual profit on Monday due to loan growth and smaller provisions to cover bad loans.
The fourth-largest lender said its 2018 net profit totalled 28.5 billion baht, but that missed an average estimate of 29.4 billion baht by 21 analysts in a Refinitiv poll.
The state-owned lender said provisions on bad loans fell 41.6% to 26.2 billion baht.
Loans rose 4.4% from a year earlier as the bank increased lending to individual customers and state-owned companies.
The economy is slowing, with the government forecasting growth of at least 3.8% this year after it estimated 4% growth in 2018.
Krungthai Bank's earnings were pressured by a 10.8% drop in fees after an industry-wide waiver on digital transaction fees, while net interest income fell 3.7%.
KTB shares rose 1.02%, or 0.20 baht, to 19.80 baht in trade worth 237.9 million baht on the Stock Exchange of Thailand on Monday.