China's Pudong Bank says Q1 net up at least 180 pct
SHANGHAI, April 14 (Reuters) - Shanghai Pudong Development Bank (600000.SS), a Chinese partner of Citigroup Inc (C.N), said on Monday its first-quarter net profit rose at least 180 percent from a year earlier.
The medium-sized commercial bank attributed the gains to asset growth, rising interest margins, growth in non-interest income and a lower effective corporate tax rate.
Net profit in the year-ago period was 980 million yuan ($139.9 million), or 0.225 yuan per share, the bank said in a statement.
Pudong Bank's upbeat forecast follows a similar announcement last Thursday by China Merchants Bank (3968.HK) (600036.SS), the country's sixth-largest lender, that its net profit in the first quarter of this year rose about 140 percent.
Listed Chinese companies are required to make preliminary estimates if they expect to report large swings in earnings.
Pudong Bank President Fu Jianhua told a shareholders' meeting last month he was confident the bank could boost net profit by at least 50 percent this year if it carried out a plan to raise up to 20 billion yuan to bolster its capital adequacy ratio.
Fu also told the meeting the bank would strive to boost net profit to 10 billion yuan this year. (For details click [ID:nSHA333636].) ($1=7.006 Yuan) (Reporting by Edmund Klamann; Editing by Louise Heavens)
