The ratio of non-performing loans at China’s four main state-owned commercial banks fell by 2.65 percentage points in the first half of 2002, according to a central bank report quoted by China Daily. The value of the loans was reduced Yn59.7bn during the period. The report said that the fall was the result of deepening reform in the banks that had managed to strengthen their marketing and sales, leading to an acceleration of loan growth and a drop in non-performing loans.
These factors helped the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China record a 35 per cent increase in profits during the first nine months of 2002. It made a book profit of Yn5bn in the period, although analysts cautioned that the gains could not be authenticated because of constantly changing accounting standards.