Nomura profit more than triples on brokerage commissions, fees

[TOKYO] Nomura Holdings Inc's first-quarter profit more than tripled as a surge in brokerage commissions and investment-banking fees outweighed a drop in trading income.

Net income climbed to 68.7 billion yen (S$758.8 million) in the three months ended June 30 from 19.9 billion yen a year earlier, Japan's biggest brokerage said in a statement Wednesday. That beat the 59 billion yen average estimate of seven analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

Japanese stocks are in their fourth year of gains, helping Chief Executive Officer Koji Nagai implement his strategy of enticing more people to invest their savings. Nomura tapped its retail clients when it sold shares for Toyota Motor Corp and Sony Corp in the current quarter, and the firm is also managing an initial public offering for Japan Post Holdings Co.

"The stock market environment is favorable for Nomura, which underwrote the Toyota deal that enabled it to obtain new accounts," said Shinichi Ina, an analyst at UBS Group AG. "Nomura will benefit from large deals that will give an incentive for depositors to shift their cash into investments."

BLOOMBERG