ING Groep 2Q Net Profit Stable; Cautions on Low Interest Rates Pressure

By Ian Walker

ING Groep N.V. (INGA.AE) Thursday reported a 0.3% fall in net profit for the second quarter of the year and cautioned that persistently low interest rates will put pressure on net interest income.

The Dutch lender made a net profit of 1.438 billion euros ($1.6 billion) for the quarter, down from EUR1.443 billion for the same period last year but higher than consensus forecasts of EUR1.32 billion, taken from FactSet and based on five analysts' forecasts.

Underling pretax profit--one of the bank's preferred metrics, which strips out exceptional and other one-off items--was EUR2.01 billion compared with EUR2.02 billion for the second quarter of 2018. Consensus forecast was EUR1.83 billion, taken from FactSet and based on four analysts' forecasts.

Net interest income rose 0.8% to EUR3.47 billion.

ING's common equity Tier 1 ratio--a key measure of balance sheet strength--stood at 14.5% at June 30 from 14.7% at March 31

"We are making good progress transforming our business so we can continue to deliver a differentiating customer experience," Chief Executive Ralph Hamers said

ING Groep has maintained its interim dividend at 24 cents.

Write to Ian Walker at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 01, 2019 01:33 ET (05:33 GMT)

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