Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - In the first quarter of this year, all local banksreported high profit growth amid the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. However,the profit growth does not reflect the complete economic picture, according tobanking insiders.

It is reported that about 10 banks announced record profit growth of more than50 percent, marking a double or triple increase compared to the same periodlast year.

In the first three months, Vietinbank saw profit growth surge by at least 135per to 7 trillion VND (304 million USD). Military bank (MB) achieved a profitgrowth of 110 percent to 4.6 trillion VND. It is the highest increase in thelast five years.

Meanwhile, MS bank earned a profit growth of 315 percent to 1.2 trillion VND.It is followed by SEAbank (126 percent to 1.931 trillion VND), and ACB (61 percentto 3.1 trillion VND).

The high increase in profit growth early this year was attributed to optimisticresults in credit growth and non-interest income compared to the same periodlast year. Banks also maintained their good profit margins, said experts.

According to the Department of Credit for Economic Sectors of the State Bank ofVietnam, as of late last month, the outstanding loans of the economy reachedover 9.46 trillion VND, making an increase of 2.93 percent compared to the endof last year. It was much higher than the 1.3 percent increase in the sameperiod last year.

In the State-owned banking sector, the growth rate of Vietcombank's outstandingloans reached 3.69 percent – the highest level over the same period in previousyears. BIDV bank and VietinBank had a credit growth of 2.7 percent and 2.6 percentrespectively in the first three months this year. Private banks also have seena good credit growth in the first quarter.

Vietcombank posted a credit growth of nearly 3.7 percent in the opening quarterof 2021, a record high for many years, Chairman of the Board of Directors NghiemXuan Thanh said.

Nguyen Ngoc Thanh, a banking analyst at Rong Viet Securities Company, said thesharp increase in banks’ profits was due to the decrease in activities of thebanks from the second quarter of 2020 until now.

Another expert explained the high profit growth in the first quarter wasbecause the banks had not yet made any credit provisions. That was the reasonwhy profit growth of banks were very high in the first quarter of this year.

Experts said banks would see positive profit growth in the remaining months of2021. However, they would not easily gain such a high growth rate as theyrecorded in the first quarter./.