Business Credit

Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA.AU) said profit climbed 12% in its fiscal third quarter, as the lender squeezed higher profit from loans after holding back central bank rate cuts from its customers.In an unaudited trading update Wednesday, Commonwealth Bank reported net profit of 1.90 billion Australian dollars (US$1.88 billion) in the three months to Mar. 31, up from A$1.70 billion a year earlier. The lender is Australia's largest by market value.Cash profit, which smoothes out one-off items, was also A$1.90 billion, compared with A$1.75 billion a year earlier and A$1.85 billion in the immediately preceding quarter.The increases were fueled largely by higher profit from Commonwealth Bank's mortgage book, the largest in Australia. The lender said its group net interest margin--a key measure of bank profitability--rose as it re-priced its home loans, partly by not passing on in full the central bank's steep rate cuts.The Reserve Bank of Australia this month cut interest rates to a r...

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