State Bank of India (SBI), the country's largest lender, on Saturday reported an unexpectedly steep 35% drop in net profit for the October-December quarter, weighed down by higher pension costs and wage revisions.
Net profit fell to Rs 9,164 crore ($1.1 billion) in its fiscal third quarter from Rs 14,205 crore in the same period a year earlier, SBI reported in a stock exchange filing.
Analysts had estimated a profit of Rs 12,987 crore for the quarter, according to LSEG data.
Profit was hit by a Rs 7,100 crore provision for wage revisions and pension costs, the bank said.