Chinese banks made handsome profits in the third quarter, but analysts said their stellar performance might not last as a struggling corporate sector begins to weigh on them.
For the time being, though, the banks shrugged off these fears. Over the past week the country’s biggest lenders reported that their net profits increased 10-20 per cent in the third quarter from a year earlier, topping most expectations. Their credit quality, long a concern, remained very healthy according to their earnings statements.
Their hefty profits came at the same time as growth in China slouched to 7.4 per cent year on year in the third quarter, putting the economy on track for its weakest year in more than a decade.