Toronto, Aug 28 (Inditop.com) There is no economic downturn for Canadian banks.
Confirming the robustness of the country’s banking system, two top banks posted biggest-ever profits Thursday.
The Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), which is the country’s top bank, reported a record net income of $1.56 billion for the third quarter ending July 31 – up 24 percent from the same period last year. The bank’s revenues rose to $7.82 billion from $5.91 billion during the same period in 2008.
“Our record results this quarter reflect the strength of our franchise, and our ability to take advantage of opportunities and drive efficiencies,” said bank president and CEO Gordon M. Nixon.
He said: “We are building on our strong competitive positions and successfully executing against our long term strategy. Our performance this quarter demonstrates the competitive advantage of our diverse business mix.”
Toronto Dominion Bank (TD Bank), which is the second largest bank in the country, also reported higher profit of $1.30 billion during the third quarter, 17 percent up from $1.11 billion during the same period last year.
Its revenue also rose to $3.54 billion during the quarter, up from $3.14 billion during the same period last year.
TD Bank president and CEO Ed Clark said, “While we expected TD’s businesses to hold up well under the weight of a global recession, their resilience is remarkable and has exceeded our expectations.”
He said, “Adjusted net income was up 17 percent from last year, a new record, with over $1 billion in retail earnings alone. We’re obviously feeling pretty good about these results, which really showcase TD’s earnings power and why we see tremendous potential upside in those earnings once conditions normalize.”
Record profits by the two banks sent their stock soaring on the Toronto stock exchange (TSX).
Shares of the RBC rose $3.46 to $56.55, while those of TD Bank went up $2.14 to $68.39.
Overall, the financial sector rose 2.27 percent during the day that saw the TSX composite index close up at 10,933.96.
