SHANGHAI,: Chinese lenders could post flat or even falling profits in 2020 despite earnings growth in the first quarter, as the coronavirus outbreak brings difficulties to the economy, the country's central bank said in an article on Sunday.
For the first quarter of 2020, China's commercial banks realised net profits of 600.1 billion yuan ($84.2 billion), up 5% year-on-year, mainly due to the expansion of banks' assets and lower management costs, according to an article by the research bureau of the People's Bank of China.