City-based public-sector lender Vijaya Bank today reported a 24.1 per cent drop in its net profit to Rs 79.88 crore for the second quarter ended September 30, 2008, compared with the corresponding quarter last year. The main reason for the decrease in profit is attributed to negative treasury income and provisioning of Rs 21 crore interest on matured deposits and higher tax outgo during the quarter.
The Bank recorded a year-on-year growth of 37.2 per cent in net interest income to Rs 269 crore. However, the net interest margin has dropped to 2.07 per cent from 2.12 per cent in the corresponding quarter last year, while the cost of deposits went up to 7.60 per cent compared to 7.19 per cent last year. Operating profit for the quarter rose marginally by 4.1 per cent to Rs 150.50 crore in the quarter compared to the same period a year ago.
