BANCO DO BRASIL S.A. By Jeffrey T. Lewis
SÃO PAULO--Banco do Brasil SA's profit jumped in the first quarter from a year earlier after it set aside less money for bad loans than in the year-earlier period.
The state-controlled bank reported net income of 4.2 billion reais, the equivalent of $796 million, in the period, a rise of 31.9% from the first quarter of 2020, while adjusted net income rose 44.7% to 4.9 billion reais. Net interest income rose 4% to 14.6 billion reais.
Banco do Brasil, along with other Brazilian banks, set aside large provisions starting in the first quarter of last year to prepare for an expected rise in bad loans due to the coronavirus pandemic. While the sharp drop in economic activity sent unemployment higher and hit businesses' income, banks so far haven't seen rapid rises in delinquent loan ratios.
Banco do Brasil provisioned a total of 2.5 billion reais for allowances for loan and lease losses in the first quarter, a decline of 54.2% from the same period a year earlier.
Write to Jeffrey T. Lewis at jeffrey.lewis@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
05-06-21 1813ET
