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The strong profit announcement from Southeast Asia's biggest bank, DBS Group, released on Friday, is good news for the region, said Neil Katkov, senior VP and Head of Asia at Celent, in an interview with CNBC.
"Singapore's economy is very trade-based and really reflects the pan-Asian region in general," Katkov explained.
DBS reported a better-than-expected 49% jump in third-quarter net profit, to S$563 million ($404 million), boosted by strong interest rate margins and lower bad debt charges. The upbeat earnings follow similarly robust results from its rivals UOB and OCBC last week.
"A very interesting aspect as well, is that DBS' very strong results (are) very heavily dependent or influenced by its forays internationally (and) throughout the region," Katkov noted. "(It is) not just a good indicator for DBS in Singapore, but for the region as a whole."
Katkov believes that international expansion is something that DBS, UOB and OCBC, the three major banks in Singapore, are aiming for as the city state is a limited market.
"I think we are going to see, probably, increased activity abroad, across all three of those banks, as they try to match DBS' very good performance," he said.
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