CHINA’S biggest listed banks posted higher profits in the first quarter despite the wider impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the economy, though margins shrank.

The world’s largest commercial lender Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd. (ICBC) on Tuesday reported a 3.04 percent rise in first quarter net profit compared to a year earlier, while Bank of Communications Co. (BoCom) reported a 1.8 percent rise.

Meanwhile at Agricultural Bank of China Ltd. (AgBank) and China Construction Bank Ltd. (CCB), first-quarter net profit rose 4.79 percent and 5 percent respectively from the same period last year.

The growth came despite China’s economy posting the first quarterly contraction since 1992 due to the pandemic.

China’s largest banks are historically more resilient than their smaller kin, as they lend more to State enterprises and have larger capital reserves.

However, despite this firmer base, net interest margins shrank at three of the four lenders, as loan prime rate reform and looser monetary policy weighed, said analysts.

AgBank did not report its net interest margin, the difference between what banks pay on deposits and earn on loans.

ICBC, AgBank and CCB bucked the trend of the wider banking sector by posting steady nonperforming loan (NPL) ratios.

The banking sector’s NPL ratio climbed in the first quarter to 2.04 percent, the banking and insurance regulator said, the highest level since the global financial crisis.

About one third of Chinese bank loans are to sectors including transport and retail that are significantly stressed by the pandemic, according to S&P Global.(SD-Agencies)