TOKYO :Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc (SMFG), Japan's second-largest lender by assets, reported a 51.3 per cent drop in fourth-quarter net profit on Monday.
SMFG posted a profit of 39.82 billion yen ($294.85 million)in the three months through March, compared with 81.84 billion yen in the year-earlier period, Reuters calculations based on the bank's filing show.
The banking group expects net profit to rise 1.8 per cent to 820 billion yen for the current business year, compared to the average 842.50 billion yen forecast by 14 analysts.
A stronger economic recovery has supported brisk lending.
In the United States, higher rates are prompting borrowers to shift to banks for loans and away from bond issuance, pushing up net interest margins, or interest earned on loans versus interest paid to depositors.
Provisions for credit losses are expected to remain subdued. The lender expects to set aside 230 billion yen to cover potential loan losses, compared with 210 billion yen a year earlier.
In the longer term, SMFG said it aimed for an annual net profit of 900 billion yen by the year ending March 2026 and 1 trillion yen or more by the year ending March 2029.
($1 = 135.0500 yen)