Q1 results set to show banks in control

Greece's systemic banks are set to show they have remained in the black over the first quarter of the year and successfully weathered the uncertainty that has prevailed during much of the long runup to the completion of the second bailout review.

Eurobank will issue its January-March performance details on Friday, followed by National and Piraeus on May 24, while Alpha Bank will issue its results on May 31.

Bank officials say that the first quarter is traditionally weak, but Q1 this year was particularly tough due to the review delays. The deterioration of the economic environment was reflected both in the outflow of deposits and the deterioration of loan portfolio quality. In this context the small profits banks did manage to generate in the year to end-March carry additional value, creating expectations for the rest of the year.

No doubt the first few months of...