National Australia Bank 3Q Profit Rises to A$1.85 Billion

   By Alice Uribe 
 

SYDNEY--National Australia Bank Ltd. recorded a rise in third-quarter profit, with the lender reporting that the majority of its customers are well placed to manage the challenges of higher inflation and interest rates.

NAB, the country's biggest business lender, recorded an unaudited net profit of 1.85 billion Australian dollars (US$1.29 billion) for the three months through June. No comparable figure was disclosed, but it compares with a profit of A$1.65 billion reported by the bank a year ago.

Chief Executive Ross McEwan said that around approximately 70% of customer home loan repayments were ahead of schedule.

"Our business is also in good shape for this evolving environment. Balance sheet settings remain strong and we are well advanced on our FY 2022 term wholesale funding task with A$34 billion raised by end-June," he said.

The lender reported unaudited cash earnings--a measure adjusted for fair value and hedging movements, which is the basis for calculating dividend payouts--of A$1.80 billion, which NAB said represented a 6.0% increase on last year.

NAB said it now expects its fiscal 2022 cost growth to be around 3-4% which includes a top-up to payroll and customer-related remediation provisions of A$60 million-A$100 million for existing matters.

Analysts from Citi had expected NAB would deliver cash earnings of A$1.75 billion, which it said is largely in line with Visible Alpha consensus of A$1.77 billion.

Write to Alice Uribe at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 08, 2022 18:59 ET (22:59 GMT)

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