French lender Societe Generale has reported a net income of €390m for the fourth quarter of 2016, a 40.5% decrease compared to €656m for the same period in 2015.
Gross operating income was €1.73bn, a rise of 1.6% from €1.70bn the year ago. Operating expenses increased 1.1%year-on-year to €4.39bn.
The group’s tier 1 ratio at the end of 31 December 2016 was 11.5%, compared to 10.9% a year ago.
The bank's French retail banking arm posted a net income of €402m for the fourth quarter of 2016, a surge of 25.2% compared to the corresponding quarter of 2015. The unit's gross operating income increased 5.8% to €766m from €724m in the prior year.
Net income at the bank's international retail banking & financial services unit stood at €438m, a 50% surge from €292m a year ago.
Societe Generale CEO Frederic Oudea said: “The quality of the Societe Generale group's results in 2016 reflects the good commercial and operating performances in all its businesses and in an uncertain environment.
"In an economic environment that is less buoyant and much more demanding on the regulatory front, we have simplified our banking model, optimised capital allocation and continued to invest in the businesses of the future, as we undertook to do in our 2014-2016 strategic plan."
