By Kosaku Narioka
Industrial & Commercial Bank of China reported lower first-quarter profit due to declines in interest income and fee and commission income.
The Chinese lender said Tuesday that net profit dropped 4.0% from a year earlier to 84.16 billion yuan, equivalent to $11.54 billion, for the three months ended March.
It said net interest income--the difference between interest earned on loans and that paid on deposits--fell 2.9% to 156.78 billion yuan, as loan interest rates have dropped in the country.
Big Chinese banks like ICBC have been lowering lending rates in recent quarters as policymakers take steps to bolster consumer confidence and support a weak property market.
Its net fee and commission income declined 1.2% to 38.88 billion yuan.
ICBC also recorded drops in net trading income and net gains on financial investments.
Meanwhile, its credit impairment losses fell 4.9% to 56.97 billion yuan.
The lender's nonperforming-loan ratio was 1.33% at the end of March, compared with 1.34% at the end of 2024.
Its Hong Kong-listed shares have risen 5.2% this year as hopes the government will provide more stimulus for the economy outweighed fears about escalating U.S.-China trade friction.
Write to Kosaku Narioka at kosaku.narioka@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 29, 2025 06:08 ET (10:08 GMT)
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