The government’s efforts to reduce bad loans are yielding results with 12 public sector banks reporting a 50 per cent jump in combined net profit at Rs 25,685 crore in the second quarter ended September, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Monday.

In the first half of FY23, the cumulative net profit of all public sector banks (PSBs) increased 32 per cent to Rs 40,991 crore.

During the second quarter, the SBI reported the highest-ever profit of Rs 13,265 crore. On a year-on-year basis, profit was 74 per cent higher than the same quarter a year ago.

“The continuous efforts of our govt for reducing the NPAs and further strengthening the health of PSBs are now showing tangible results,” Sitharaman said in a tweet.

She further said Canara Bank reported an 89 per cent jump in profit to Rs 2,525 crore compared with the second quarter of the previous fiscal.

Calcutta-based Uco Bank posted a 145 per cent surge in profit to Rs 504 crore, while Bank of Baroda’s profit increased 58.70 per cent to Rs 3,312.42 crore in the second quarter, she said in an another tweet.

SBI shines

The shares of SBI on Monday hit a record high as investors cheered its better-than-expected performance in the second quarter.

Various brokerages raised their target price on the stock that gave an upside of 15-30 per cent from the current price.

India’s No. 1 lender gained 4.90 per cent to hit a record 622.90 after which it settled at Rs 614.20 on the BSE, thus showing a rise of 3.44 per cent or Rs 20.45.