Mizuho posts 45% jump in first-quarter profit, raises annual forecast
Logo of Mizuho Financial Group at its head office in Tokyo, Japan, June 19, 2026. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon
TOKYO, July 30 : Japan's Mizuho Financial Group reported a 45 per cent rise in first-quarter profit on Thursday, a sign that loan demand has stayed strong despite volatile global energy markets and supply chain disruptions caused by war in the Middle East.
Japan's third-largest banking group also raised its annual profit forecast to 1.4 trillion yen ($8.56 billion) - which would be a record - for the year ending March 2027.
"Given the situation in the Middle East these were some very strong results. But we can’t let our foot off the gas," Kazuharu Sasaki, executive officer and head of Mizuho's financial planning division, told a press conference.
Japanese banks' profitability has surged in recent years as the end of decades of deflation encourages companies to take out loans to fund growth investments, capital expenditure and mergers and acquisitions.
Banks have also benefited from higher spreads between deposits and loans as the Bank of Japan has raised interest rates in response to inflation.
Net profit for the April-June period stood at 422.9 billion yen ($2.59 billion), versus 290.5 billion in the year-earlier period.
Mizuho's domestic loan and deposit rate margin in the first quarter rose to 1.26 per cent, up from 1.1 per cent in the year ended March 2026.
The results were also lifted by higher fee revenue, for instance from investment banking, with non-interest income growing about 20 per cent over the first quarter last year, to reach 376.8 billion yen.
Mizuho follows major Wall Street banks and Japan's largest investment bank and brokerage, Nomura Holdings, in booking healthy trading profits boosted by record high share prices over the quarter.
"Banking sales and trading had an extremely strong quarter, particularly U.S. equity trading. If volatility continues I think we can continue to expect good results," Sasaki said.
The group also doubled the size of its share buyback programme to 200 billion yen.
The Bank of Japan is set to keep interest rates steady at 1 per cent at a monetary policy meeting on Friday, but analysts polled by Reuters expect a hike to 1.25 per cent by the end of December and possibly as soon as October.
Mizuho's larger rivals Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group are due to announce results on Friday and Monday next week respectively.
($1=163.5800 yen)
