UPDATE 1-La Caixa 9-month recurrent net profit up 18.9 pct
October 24th, 2008 | by admin |* Recurrent net profit 1.773 billion euros
* Net interest revenue 2.995 billion euros
* Non-performing loans 1.69 percent of total
(Adds details)
MADRID, Oct 23 (Reuters) - Spain’s leading savings bank LaCaixa on Thursday posted recurrent net profit, excludingone-time gains, of 1.773 billion euros ($2.28 billion) for thefirst nine months of 2008, up 18.9 percent from a year earlier.
In a statement, La Caixa said, however, that net profit grew7 percent in the nine months period to 1.571 billion euros froma year earlier, after deducting dividends paid to minorityshareholders in 2008 after listing its industrial holding companyCriteria. (CRIT.MC: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz).
The nine months net figure does not include anyextraordinary gains, given that the 225 million euros booked inthe period were earmarked in their entirety for provisions, theBarcelona-based savings bank said.
In the same period of 2007, La Caixa — a major domesticrival to Spain’s biggest banks Santander (SAN.MC: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and BBVA(BBVA.MC: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) — posted net profit of 1.826 billion euros, boostedby capital gains of 360 million euros from the sale of variousassets.
Net interest revenue rose 12.6 percent to 2.995 billioneuros from a year earlier, La Caixa said.
