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French bank SocGen reports quarterly profits collapse
2008-11-03
PARIS (AFP) - Societe Generale bank on Monday reported an 83-percent collapse in third-quarter profits on provisions and write-downs but its shares gained 2.0 percent. The bank, hit by a huge unauthorised trading scandal at the beginning of the year, said the provisions and write-downs had arisen mainly in its financing and investment divisions. Net profit fell to 183 million euros (235.7 million dollars) from 1.123 billion euros in the same period of last year. Shares in the bank firmed by 2.0 percent to 43.02 euros in early Paris trading however. Analysts at Natixis Securities said: "Despite a terrible September on the markets, and contrary to many rumours which have circulated recently, Societe Generale has managed to report a positive result" for the third quarter. Deutsche Bank analysts said the overall results were good and that "retail banking activity in France and outside France is stronger than expected." Net banking income, or the gross margin on taking in funds and lending them out, rose by 2.4 percent, which was more than the bank's target for the year of 1.0-2.0 percent.
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