Woori Bank, a major South Korean commercial lender, said Wednesday its first-quarter net profit shot up 43.8 percent from a year earlier due mainly to decreased loan-loss provisions.
Net profit jumped to 637.5 billion won ($559 million) in the January-March period on a consolidated basis, compared with 443.3 billion won a year earlier, the lender said in a statement.
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(Yonhap)
The bank attributed the rise in net profit to decreased loan-loss provisions, increased noninterest income, and a cut in costs through reductions of employees and branches.
It said its interest income came to 1.26 trillion won in the first quarter, up 1.5 percent from a year earlier. Meanwhile, the bank's noninterest income rose to 449.6 billion won from 265.2 billion won during the same period.
Shares in Woori Bank were trading at 14,150 won on the Seoul bourse as of 2:25 p.m. (Yonhap)