Company briefs - 2012-11-01

Oct 31, 2012

The Latvian banking sector’s total profit for the first nine months of the year was 119.3 million lats (170 million euros), according to the Financial and Capital Market Commission’s preliminary data on Latvian bank performance this past September, reports Nozare.lv. Fifteen Latvian banks and four foreign banks’ branches in Latvia, whose total share of Latvian bank assets is 92.6 percent, operated with a profit in the first nine months. The banking sector’s profit before provisions and tax amounted to 230 million lats altogether - up by one-third from the same period in 2011. Compared to the first nine months of 2011, banks’ interest income has increased 5.7 percent and net commission income rose 16.6 percent this year. Bank loan loss provisions dropped by almost 27 percent. Over the past three years, Latvian banks were operating with losses. In 2011, bank losses amounted to 178.7 million lats altogether, down from 360.7 million lats in 2010 and 773.4 million lats in 2009. In 2008, the Latvian banking sector earned 60.1 million lats in profit, bank profits in 2007 were 371.3 million lats and 265.9 million lats in 2006.

The value of the 100 most valuable Estonian companies fell in a year by 14 percent to 11.9 billion euros, the list of most valuable companies compiled by investment counseling company Gild Corporate Finance indicates, reports Public Broadcasting. The state-owned energy concern Eesti Energia with an estimated 1.3 billion euro value topped this year’s list of most valuable companies. Second place went to Swedbank, the value of which was estimated at 990 million euros and third to Vopak E.O.S with an estimated 630 million euro value. Last year, Swedbank was the most valuable company while Eesti Energia was second, and Vopak E.O.S in third position. Teliasonera-owned Eesti Telekom, the value of which has been estimated at 549 million euros, continues in fourth place. In one year, Ericsson Eesti with an estimated value of 487 million euros has climbed from 9th to 5th place. The top ten also includes SEB (400 million euros); Tallink Grupp (390 million euros), Tallinna Sadam (310 million euros), Eesti Raudtee (280 million euros) and Viru Keemia Grupp (240 million euros). Gild stressed that the list presents estimates of equity value, which may differ significantly from actual take-over or floatation value.

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