Barclays to flag further profit progress amid economic rebound

Barclays, the banking giant that last week opened its new Glasgow super campus on the banks of the Clyde, is poised to report a further improvement in profits as it rebounds from the pandemic.

Barclays has opened its new state-of-the-art campus next to the Clyde River in Glasgow. Picture: Michael McGurk/Barclays

Shares in the lender have almost doubled in the past 12 months amid an economic recovery, resilient investment markets and a commencement of share buybacks.

Barclays has already recorded a strong profit rebound in the first half of 2021, posting pre-tax profits of £5 billion against £1.3bn in the same period a year earlier.

Analysts are expecting a further year-on-year improvement when the bank reports on third-quarter trading later this week. It made a profit of £1.1bn a year ago.

Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said the City would be looking beyond the profit numbers at a range of factors, including loan growth relative to deposit growth, net interest margins, loan provisions and the performance of the investment banking operation.

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