Treasury losses and slower growth in advances have taken a toll on ICICI Bank’s profits for the first quarter, reports Our Mumbai Bureau. ICICI Bank reported a 6% lower net profit for the first quarter ended June 30 at Rs 728 crore, down from Rs 775 crore in the corresponding period of the previous fiscal.
The bank is now targeting a lower growth of 5-10 % from retail loans against 10-12 % targeted earlier. However, corporate and international loans are expected to grow by over 25%. The fall in profits comes on the back of a loss of Rs 594 crore in treasury operations against a profit of Rs 195 crore in the corresponding period last year. With Reserve Bank of India increasing interest rates to control inflation, bond prices crashed leading to a widespread mark-to-market losses for banks. Equity markets too have crashed.