Big banks' latent profits on stocks top 1.6 tril. yen.

Japan Weekly Monitor, July, 2003

TOKYO, July 3 Kyodo

Latent profits on shareholdings by Japan's seven major banking groups have topped 1.6 trillion yen on an unconsolidated basis thanks to recent rises in Tokyo stocks, according to an estimate made by Daiwa Institute of Research Ltd. on Thursday.

The profit represents a sharp contrast with their unrealized losses totaling 1.2 trillion yen at the end of fiscal 2002 on March 31.

Daiwa calculates that the seven major banking groups, including Mizuho Financial Group Inc., Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group Inc. and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc., lose latent profits on shareholdings when the Tokyo Stock Price Index (TOPIX) of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) stands at 864.

The leading...