New Delhi: Hit by low treasury income and
higher provisioning, the net profit of Punjab National Bank
(PNB) remained flat at Rs 1,011 crore for the third quarter
ended December.
The country's second largest public sector lender had
reported a net profit of Rs 1,006 crore during the same
quarter last fiscal.
Although it reported a flat profit, as the market leader
State Bank did last week, PNB too proposed 100 per cent
interim dividend for its shareholders.
The total income of the bank also remained at the same
level as that of the corresponding quarter a year ago at Rs
6,236.55 crore.
During the quarter, the bank booked a treasury income of
only Rs 157 crore against Rs 341 crore in the same quarter a
year ago, PNB chairman and managing director KR Kamath told
reporters here, while announcing the third quarter numbers.
Besides, the bank also made prudent provisioning for the
debt relief scheme and expected wage revision, pulling down
the profit, he added.
Despite offering the lowest benchmark prime lending rate
(BPLR) in the industry, the bank improved it net interest
margin (NIM) to 3.84 per cent at the end of December from
3.59 per cent at the end of same period last year, he said.
Without specifying the NIM figures for the fourth quarter,
Kamath said, the bank aims to maintain a NIM of 3.5 per cent
during the fiscal.
An adhoc provision of Rs 275 crore was made towards
wage revision during nine months period ended December taking
the cumulative provisioning for wage settlement to Rs 875
crore, Kamath said.
During the quarter, the bank restructured loan worth
Rs 10,593 crore of the total loan book size of 1.73 lakh
crore.
However, total business of the bank crossed Rs 4-lakh
crore-mark in December to reach Rs 4,04,373 crore as against
Rs 3,38,728 crore in the same month a year ago, showing an
annual growth of 19.4 per cent, he said.
During December quarter, the bank opened 195 new branches
in the country taking the total to 4,894, including 88
extension counters.
Asked about interest rate, Kamath said, "I think
rates are likely to remain stable till March."
For the nine months ended December, PNB reported 24.5 per
cent increase in net profit at Rs 2,770 crore compared
to Rs 2,225 crore in the same period a year ago.
Total income rose by 14.53 per cent at Rs 18,490 crore
during this April-December period, from Rs 16,120 crore in the
same period last fiscal.
The has also established India Factoring and Finance
Solutions in collaboration with FIM Bank of Malta, Banca IFIS
of Italy and Blend Financial Service, to facilitate factoring
and trade finance related business, he said.
PTI
First Published: Wednesday, January 27, 2010, 21:57