[THE INVESTOR] Woori Bank said on April 19 that its first-quarter net profit shot up 43.8 percent from a year earlier.

Its net profit jumped to 637.5 billion won (US$559 million) in the January-March period on a consolidated basis, compared with 443.3 billion won a year earlier, the lender said in a statement.

The bank attributed the rise in net profit to decreased loan-loss provisions, increased non-interest income, and a cut in costs through reductions of employees and branches.

It said its interest income came to 1.26 trillion won in the first quarter, up 1.5 percent from a year earlier. Meanwhile, the bank’s non-interest income rose to 449.6 billion won from 265.2 billion won during the same period.

By Alex Lee and newswires (alexlee@heraldcorp.com)