Credit Quality

Nov 03, 2010 (LBO) - Sri Lanka's Nations Trust Bank (NTB) said net profit for the September 2010 quarter rose 104 percent to 354 million rupees from a year ago as interest margins improved and bad loans fell.

Interest income fell 10 percent to 2.6 billion rupees and interest costs fell at a faster 32 percent to 1.





4 billion rupee, allowing net interest income to rise 41 percent to 1.



2 billion rupees, a stock exchange filing said.

Non-interest income rose 22 percent to 721 million rupees while provision for bad loans fell 86 percent to 24 million rupees.

NTB's basic earnings per share were 1.71 rupees in the September 2010 quarter compared with 1.

04 rupees the year before.

Total performing loans and advances as at September 30, 2010 were up 29 percent to 43.

3 billion rupees from the beginning of the year while total deposits rose eight percent to 48 billion rupees.

At bank level the interest margin rose to 5.46 percent from 4.85 percent during the period.

NTB group's return on equity rose to 19.

08 percent from 15.20 percent.

Against the backdrop of improving economic activity, we have delivered good growth in income and profit during the first nine months of the year, by gro