Glory Times October 31st | Bank of America Securities released research reports stating that the Bank of Communications' net income in the first nine months of this year decreased by 0.7% year-on-year, weaker than most domestic peers; core profit dropped by 3.6% year-on-year, accounting for 76% of the bank's full-year forecast for the fiscal year 2024. In addition, Bank of America Securities raised its profit forecast for the Bank of Communications for fiscal years 2024 to 2026 by 1% to 3%, and increased the H-share target price from 5.9 Hong Kong dollars to 6.08 Hong Kong dollars, downgrading the rating from "buy" to "neutral." Bank of America mentioned that in the third quarter of this year, the Bank of Communications' net interest margin (NIM) dropped by 3 basis points quarter-on-quarter, similar to the industry trend; net interest income (NII) decreased by 0.3% quarterly; the scale of non-performing loans increased by 2.3% quarterly. Bank of America Securities also expects that the credit cost of Bank of Communications in the first nine months of this year is approximately 68 basis points, lower than the 82 basis points in the same period last year.