(7 May 2007 – Singapore) Singapore’s largest bank DBS has posted S$617 million for the first quarter of 2007, a 19 percent increase on last year, and up 11 percent on the previous quarter.The result, which beat analyst forecasts, was built on strong lending and securities trading fees.
DBS said customer loans increased by 20 percent from a year ago and nine percent from the previous quarter to SGD94.3 billion, led by corporate borrowing in Singapore and the region.
Non performing loans dipped to 1.5 percent from 2.1 percent a year ago and 1.7 percent in the previous quarter.
Overall, non performing assets, including debt securities and contingent liabilities, fell 17 percent from a year ago and five percent from the previous quarter to S$1.46 billion.
DBS vice chairman and CEO Jackson Tai said the bank’s Asia customer franchise delivered consistent growth in spite of strong margin pressure.
“Our results were encouraging across businesses and geography, led by higher loan volumes, stronger treasury results and continued growth in fees,” he said.