China Merchants Bank Posts First Annual Net Operating Income Drop in Over a Decade

By Jiahui Huang

China Merchants Bank reported lower net operating income in 2023, marking the first drop since 2009 as non-interest income declined amid sluggish capital markets.

The Chinese bank said late Monday that its net operating income fell 1.64% to 339.08 billion yuan ($47.03 billion). Its net profit was CNY146.60 billion compared with CNY138.01 billion a year earlier.

Profit before tax rose 7.0% to CNY176.62 billion.

The drop in net operating income was largely due to lower non-interest income. In 2023, China Merchants Bank's net non-interest income fell 1.65% to CNY124.41 billion, which it attributed to insufficient effective demand and a continued downturn in capital markets.

The bank's fee and commission income from wealth management fell 7.9% to CNY28.47 billion in 2023.

This year, the bank said it aims to boost fee and commission income from its wealth-management business, and strengthen its market research capabilities.

Write to Jiahui Huang at jiahui.huang@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 25, 2024 21:21 ET (01:21 GMT)

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