Excluding the impact mentioned above of the changes in exchange rates, the trend in the Group’s gross income in the first quarter of 2014 has been very positive and marked by:
- The strength of net interest income, which grew by 7.8% over the last year at constant exchange rates. This trend is particularly positive taking into account the environment in which it has been produced: low activity in Spain and in the wholesale business in Europe; low interest rates, above all in the developed geographical areas; the lack of the “floor clauses” in the mortgage loans of Spanish consumers (they were eliminated on May 9, 2013); and the more expensive cost of deposits in Turkey since the second half of 2013. Despite these factors, the Group has improved its net interest income thanks to an active maintenance of spreads, increased activity in emerging markets and the United States, and appropriate structural interest-rate risk management.
Net interest income/ATA
(Percentage)
- A good level of income from fees and commissions (up 3.3% year-on-year) due to the growth of those from asset management and wholesale banking operations (developed markets), a positive performance in Garanti and strong activity in the rest of the emerging geographical areas.
Net interest income plus fees and commissions
(Million euros)
- Excellent performance of NTI, due to another positive quarter in the Global Markets unit and appropriate management of structural risks on the balance sheet.
There is nothing significant in the rest of the items forming part of gross income:
- Dividends basically include those coming from Global Markets.
- Income by the equity method is mainly from the Group’s stake in the Chinese company Citic International Financial Holdings (CIFH).
- The other operating income and expenses heading includes the adjustment for hyperinflation in Venezuela, which in the first quarter of 2014 was slightly more negative than in the same period of 2013. It should also be noted that in the fourth quarter of 2013 this heading included the extraordinary payment to the Spanish Deposit Guarantee Fund (FGD), in compliance with Royal Decree-Law 6/2013.
Gross income
(Million euros)
