Kolkata– State-run United Bank of India (UBI) on Monday reported a net loss of Rs 637.53 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2017, as compared to a net profit of Rs 64.10 crore for the a year-ago period.

The net loss for the quarter was on the back of sharp fall in operating profit and a huge increase in provisions to cover rising bad loans.

During the quarter ended December, the bank’s operating profit saw a 65.76 per cent fall to Rs 181.53 crore compared to Rs 530.15 crore in the same period of the previous year.

During the third quarter, its provision and contingencies stood at Rs 1,074.35 crore, up by 82.5 per cent year-on-year. The bank’s provisions for non-performing assets rose 95 per cent to Rs 964.07 crore as against Rs 494.52 crore.

The lender provided Rs 167.44 crore during the third quarter of 2017-18 in respect of seven accounts covered under provisions of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), it said.

The bank’s asset quality deteriorated further in the December quarter as gross non-performing assets (NPAs) in absolute term rose 26.51 per cent to Rs 13,720.69 crore in the quarter under review.

Gross NPA as a percentage of total loans rose to 20.10 per cent in the third quarter this fiscal from 15.98 per cent during the same period of 2016-17.

In the December quarter, net NPA ratio rose to 11.96 per cent from 10.62 per cent in the same period last fiscal. (IANS)