Agricultural Bank profits up 14.5% in China

The Agricultural Bank of China (ABC), one of the country's four largest banks, reported on Tuesday that its net profits rose 14.5 percent year on year to 166.21 billion yuan (27.06 billion U.S. dollars) in 2013. The bank attributed the profit rise to the steady growth of net interest income and commission fees, as well as enhanced control of risks and costs, according to its annual report filed with the Shanghai Stock Exchange. The bank's interest income stood at 613.38 billion yuan, while revenues from fees and commission charges rose 11.1 percent to 83.17 billion yuan. By the end of 2013, its asset value amounted to 14.56 trillion yuan, an increase of 9.9 percent from a year earlier. The bank's non-performing loans ratio stood at 1.22 percent, 0.11 percentage points lower than the previous year. Its capital adequacy ratio came in at 11.86 percent, down 0.75 percentage points from 2012.