Standard Chartered surpasses estimates with 5.5% increase in Q1 pretax profit

StanChart beats estimates: Standard Chartered PLC, has reported a 5.5 per cent increase in its pretax profit for the first quarter, surpassing expectations. The bank, primarily focused on emerging markets, experienced boosted earnings due to higher interest rates.

In the initial quarter, StanChart achieved a pretax profit of $1.91 billion, marking a rise from $1.81 billion in the previous year. This exceeded the average estimate of $1.39 billion from 13 analysts surveyed by the bank.

Bill Winters, the Chief Executive of StanChart, expressed satisfaction with the robust performance, citing double-digit income growth and positive operational leverage.

"We delivered a strong set of results in the first quarter of 2024, with double-digit growth in income and positive operational leverage," Winters said in the earnings statement.

Despite the positive quarterly results, the bank faced a deterioration in credit impairments, recording a $165 million writedown in the first three months compared to $20 million in the previous year.

StanChart had previously written down a total of $850 million on its stake in China's Bohai Bank due to challenges stemming from China's economic slowdown and the property sector crisis.

The bank's joint ventures also experienced a decline in profitability, with profits decreasing from $18 million to $6 million primarily due to Bohai Bank's performance, indicating ongoing difficulties in China.

(With Reuters Inputs)