OCBC surprises with 5% rise in net profit after tax for Q3

Singapore

OCBC Bank on Thursday reported an unexpected rise in net profit after tax for the third quarter - up 5 per cent to S$943 million - boosted by higher wealth-management fees and increased earnings from insurance.

Analysts polled by Bloomberg and Reuters had expected the bank - the first of the three local ones to post its Q3 results - to report a second straight quarterly decline in profit on the back of bad loans.

Core banking lending business was lower with net interest income down 6 per cent to S$1.23 billion; the loan book shrank and net interest margin fell amid a slowing economy.

Minister for Trade and Industry Lim Hng Kiang had already warned this month that the economy is expected to grow by the lower end of a 1-2 per cent growth range, and that "some quarters …