National Australia Bank Reports Modest Dip in Profit

National Australia Bank (NAB), the largest business lender in the country, has revealed that its unaudited net profit for the third quarter fell to A$1.75 billion ($970 million). While no comparable figure was disclosed, this represents a decline from the A$1.85 billion profit reported by the bank during the same period last year. Despite this, Chief Executive Ross McEwan expressed satisfaction with the result, highlighting the bank's solid performance in the face of challenging market conditions.

NAB's cash earnings for the quarter, adjusted for fair value and hedging movements, amounted to A$1.90 billion, indicating a 5.8% increase compared to the previous year. In a bid to improve its financial position, the bank has also announced plans for a A$1.5 billion share buyback. The goal of this buyback is to bring NAB's Common Equity Tier 1 within a target range of 11.0-11.5%.

Subject to market conditions, the buyback is expected to commence in late August. Despite acknowledging the difficult environment for customers, NAB noted that asset quality deterioration was only modest in the third quarter. This reflects the bank's consistent and disciplined execution of its strategy amidst factors such as higher interest rates, slowing growth, inflationary pressures, and intense competition.