New Delhi, June 07: Bank of Baroda's northern zone has recorded an impressive net profit of Rs 181 crore in 2002-03, riding high on reduced cost of deposit and other expenses. Although the net profit of the zone could not be compared to the consolidated net profit of the bank, the northern zone's contribution roughly stands about 20 per cent of the total net profit of BOB, its Deputy General Manager B A Prabhakar told reporters here today.

The cost of deposit of the zone fell drastically to 6.27 per cent in 2002-03 as compared to 7.32 per cent in the year-ago period, while other expenses averaged around 0.37 per cent, he said.
Total business of the zone stood at around Rs 9,700 crore in 2002-03, which comprised about 10 per cent of the total business of the bank.
Of the total business, deposits stood at Rs 6,000 crore and advances were at Rs 3,700 crore, he said, adding that by adding over 60,000 customers, the client base for savings deposits had grown by around 16 per cent. Bureau Report