Bank of Hawaii parent’s
earnings slip 1.4% in
3rd quarter

The company says reducing
Asian loans is paying off

Star-Bulletin staff

Pacific Century Financial Corp., parent of Bank of Hawaii, saw its third-quarter profit slip 1.4 percent as it continued to try to lessen the impact of Asia's economic crisis on its bottom line.

The company yesterday reported a third-quarter profit of $34.8 million, or 43 cents a share, down from $35.3 million, also 43 cents a share, in the third quarter of 1997.

Pacific Century took action earlier in the year to ease the burden of Asia's economic turmoil by boosting the company's reserves and cutting its Asian loan portfolio. Those moves are paying off, said Lawrence M. Johnson, chairman and chief executive officer.

The Asian loan reduction pulled down the company's assets a little, although the drop was offset partially by the acquisition of banks in French Polynesia. Assets on Sept. 30 totaled $14.6 billion, down from $14.9 billion at the end of September 1997.

Deposits of $9.42 billion were down 0.2 percent from $9.44 billion at the end of the year-earlier quarter. Loans of $9.13 billion were down 0.1 percent from $9.15 billion a year earlier.

During the latest quarter, Pacific Century closed some branches and restructured its branch system to cut its annual operating expenses by $22 million. At the end of the quarter it merged its First Federal Savings & Loan Association subsidiary into its main subsidiary, Bank of Hawaii.