Earnings at South Korean banks’ overseas branches surged in the first three months of this year from a year earlier as they increased business loans in big markets, industry data showed Wednesday.

Woori Bank’s 64 foreign branches recorded $69.54 million in operating profit for the January-March period, soaring 116.6 percent from $32.1 million on year.

The operating profit of Shinhan Bank’s 68 overseas offices vaulted 40.5 percent on-year to $39.01 million over the cited period, while Korea Exchange Bank saw a 21.4 percent on-year growth to $50.15 million in operating profit across its 91 overseas branches.

Market insiders said the rise in loans and a drop in the delinquency rate contributed to the strong performances in overseas markets.

“We increased loans to blue-chip companies in big markets like Japan, Vietnam and the United States. This helped our earnings improve,” an official from Shinhan Bank said. (Yonhap)