05.03.2001
Newer banks' EPS results not about to shatter any records

• Fourteen of the fifteen newer banks have announced pretax EPS results for the year-to-April period. E. Sun (2840 'Yu Shan Yin') and Bank SinoPac (2839 'Hua Xin Yin') booked the highest EPS to April, both at NT$0.56, beating out Taishin International (2844 'Tai Shin Yin') with NT$0.49. In terms of pretax profit, Taishin was top of the class with NT$993m, leading second place Bank SinoPac with NT$976m and E. Sun with NT$929m.

• The new banks are conservative about the overall economic outlook and are setting cautious financial projections for the year. To April, these banks have averaged around 32% of 2001 forecasts. It is too early to say whether they will adjust full-year forecasts.

• The fourteen banks have also released outstanding loan and deposit numbers for April, with nearly all of them showing a slight decrease MoM. The sluggish economy is putting a dampener on demand for loans while decreasing interest rates are cutting into deposits. Although most of the banks realized profit in line with expectations, we are concerned that contracting loan growth will undercut profit margin and potentially lead to higher overdue loan ratios.

WilliamFong@Primasia.com +886-[0]2-2547-8864