Is state-controlled NatWest using rising interest rates to rebuild its profit margins? Third-quarter results this morning reveal that the bank’s net interest margin, the difference between the rate at which a bank raises deposits and that at which it lends money, rose to 2.99 per cent, up 27 basis points quarter-on-quarter.
Good news for shareholders (and those of us with large mortgages); not such great news for savers.
NatWest posted pre-tax profit of £1.08 billion for the quarter, slightly below the £1.2 billion analysts had forecast as higher costs and higher impairments hit profits. The bank set aside an additional £247 million to cover potential bad debts.
NatWest warned that costs would be higher than the City forecast next year, but said that its forecasts
© Times Newspapers Limited 2022.