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STOCKHOLM, April 28 (Reuters) – Swedish bank SEB reported a better-than-expected net profit for the first quarter on Wednesday amid improved market trading conditions and growth of its assets under management, and narrowing loan loss provisions.
Net profit at Sweden’s top corporate bank rose to 6.02 billion Swedish crowns ($717.6 million)from a year-ago 2.36 billion, beating a mean forecast of 4.87 billion in a Refinitiv poll of analysts.
“The overall concern observed last year in the global economy has been replaced by an increased optimism,” CEO Johan Torgeby said in the report.
Loan loss provisions, a figure closely watched in the wake of the economic slump due to the pandemic, were 156 million crowns compared to a year-ago 1.5 billion, much better than the 803 million seen by analysts.
Like its Swedish peers Handelsbanken and Swedbank, SEB’s loan portfolio has weathered predictions of a surge in soured debt during a pandemic that has shut businesses and increased unemployment around the world.
Fee and commission income at Sweden’s top corporate bank rose slightly to 4.78 billion crowns from 4.62 billion a year ago, as increased assets under management offset the sluggish effect the pandemic had on payments.
Interest income, which includes income from mortgages, increased to 6.4 billion crowns from 6.20 billion a year ago, amid strong demand for mortgages in Sweden. ($1 = 8.3891 Swedish crowns) (Reporting by Colm Fulton; editing by Niklas Pollard)
