PwC: Top Chinese banks in good health

China's top 10 listed banks are operating smoothly, expanding the size of their assets and liabilities and maintaining earnings growth while exhibiting a clear downward trend in terms of the quality of their credit assets, according to an report released on Tuesday by London-based PricewaterhouseCooper's — Analysis of China's Top 10 Listed Banks Results for 2013.

Across the board, these banks are facing increasing non-performing loan balances and NPL ratios being observed across the board, the report said.

Data on the 10 lenders showed total assets of 86.92 trillion yuan ($13.94 trillion) in 2013, up 10.46 percent from the end of 2012. These banks posted net profits of 1.09 trillion yuan for 2013, up 12.64 percent year-on-year- though this growth rate fell by 3.77 percent compared to 2012.

For most of the banks, return on average assets remained unchanged from the previous year, while weighted average return on equity fell.

The top 10 listed banks had an NPL balance of 449.4 billion yuan at the end of 2013, up 19.47 percent from the end of 2012. The average NPL ratio increased 0.06 percent to 0.99 percent. This increase in NPL balance and NPL ratio points to a clear downward trend in the quality of the credit assets of these banks.

Analysts said a decline in the quality of banking assets indicates that the negative effects of the slowdown in economic growth are impacting banks.

Top 10 Listed Banks are Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, China Construction Bank Corporation, Agricultural Bank of China, Bank of China Limited, Bank of Communications Company Limited, China Merchants Bank, Shanghai Pudong Development Bank, Industrial Bank Corporation Limited, China CITIC Bank, and China Minsheng Banking Corporation Limited.