SBI Profit Jumps Over Four-Fold To Rs 3,581 Crore In March Quarter

State Bank of India (SBI) - the country's largest lender by assets - on Friday reported a net profit of Rs 3,580.81 crore for the quarter ended March 31. That marked a surge of more than four times compared to its profit of Rs 838.40 crore in the corresponding period a year ago. The financial results by State Bank of India come at a time when the country is in the fifth phase of a nationwide lockdown to battle the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, which has battered the economy and forced many businesses to trim operations.

(Also Read: COVID-19 Lockdown Fuels India's Biggest Earnings Decline Since 2014)

In a regulatory filing, SBI said its total income from operations came in at Rs 76,027.51 crore in the final quarter of 2019-20, as against Rs 75,670.50 crore a year ago.

SBI's net interest income - or the difference between the interest earned from loans and the interest expended on deposits - dropped marginally to Rs 22,767 crore in the fourth quarter of 2019-20, from Rs 22,954 crore in the year-ago period.

Asset quality improved as gross non-performing assets as a percentage of total loans came in at 6.15 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2019-20, as against 6.94 per cent in the quarter ended December 31, and 7.53 per cent in the quarter ended March 31, 2019. Total gross NPAs stood at Rs 1,49,091.85 crore. Net NPAs came in at 2.23 per cent in the January-March period, as against 2.65 per cent in the previous quarter.

The bank's provisions for bad loans rose to Rs 11,894 crore in the January-March period, compared to Rs 8,193 crore in the quarter ended December 31.

SBI said the spread of COVID-19 across the globe has led to a decline in economic activity and volatility in financial markets. 

However, there will not be any significant impact on SBI's liquidity and profitability, the lender said. 

SBI's board did not declare any final dividend for the final quarter of 2019-20.

State Bank of India shares as much as 9.05 per cent to Rs 189.80 apiece on the BSE after the earnings announcement. At 3:12 pm, the SBI stock was up 7.93 per cent at Rs 187.85, outperforming the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex index which was up 0.86 per cent.