Barclays, Lloyds Banking Group, and NatWest are expected to report higher first-half profits this week, but experts caution they may increase provisions for bad loans as the Iran war pushes up living costs. Barclays is forecast to post a pre-tax profit of about £5.9 billion, up from £5.2 billion a year earlier, while Lloyds is expected to report £4.1 billion, up from £3.5 billion. KPMG’s UK head of banking Steve Payne said the conflict is likely to cause at least marginal increases in bad loan provisions due to higher fuel and food costs. Interactive Investor’s Richard Hunter added that customer defaults and impairment charges will be central to sentiment, even as higher-for-longer interest rates could benefit the sector.
Barclays PLCExpected higher first-half profits (pre-tax £5.9bn vs £5.2bn)
Lloyds Banking Group PLCExpected higher first-half profits (pre-tax £4.1bn vs £3.5bn)
NatWest Group PLCExpected higher first-half profits (not specified but implied similar trend)