Standard Chartered second-quarter profit rises 54%, unveils US$1.3 billion share buy-back
CEO Winters says performance is attributable to focus on ‘cross-border and affluent banking’
Net profit for the April-to-June quarter rose to US$1.8 billion, or 72.5 US cents a share, from US$1.17 billion a year earlier, the bank said in a filing to the Hong Kong stock exchange. The result exceeded an analysts’ consensus estimate of US$1.33 billion that was compiled by the bank.
The London-based bank, which generates most of its business from Asia, said its pre-tax underlying profit for the period rose 34 per cent from a year earlier to US$2.4 billion, beating a consensus estimate of US$1.9 billion.
For the first half, net profit rose 41 per cent to US$3.07 billion from US$2.17 billion a year earlier. Analysts expected a profit of US$2.82 billion. The bank announced an interim dividend of 12.3 US cents a share, up 27 per cent from a year earlier.
“Our strong first-half performance reflects continued successful execution of our strategy, through our focus on cross-border and affluent banking,” CEO Bill Winters said in a media briefing.