MANILA—The absence of exceptional trading gains continued to weigh on Landbank of the Philippines’ profit at the end of September, reflecting an industry-wide slump due to rising interest rates and volatile market conditions.
In a statement, the government’s largest bank said it would still hit its full-year profit goal on the strength of its growing loan portfolio and expanding asset base.
“We remain confident about meeting our full-year target,” Landbank president and CEO Gilda Pico said, citing the firm’s strong revenue growth.
In the nine months ending September, Landbank booked a profit of P9.3 billion, 11-percent lower than its profit during the same period last year. The net income decline was narrower than the 29-percent drop seen in the first half of the year, indicating that gains were made in the July to September period.
The nine-month profit translates to a 14.5-percent return on equity for the government.
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