By Mathieu Rosemain and Matthieu Protard
PARIS (Reuters) -Credit Agricole SA, France's second-biggest listed bank, posted better-than-expected earnings on Wednesday, as market volatility boosted trading revenue.
Sales derived from trade in fixed income, currency and commodities (FICC) jumped 42%, Credit Agricole (EPA:CAGR) Group's listed entity said, outperforming peers such as bigger French rival BNP Paribas (EPA:BNPP), Deutsche Bank (ETR:DBKGn) and Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS).
This helped drive Credit Agricole's quarterly sales to 6.12 billion euros ($6.74 billion), up 9.6% from a year earlier, while net income more than doubled to about 1.23 billion euros.
Both figures beat market expectations of 5.9 billion euros and 816 million euros, respectively, according to an analyst consensus compiled by the company.
Robust demand for hedging services due to high volatility in the markets and strong levels of bond issuance laid the ground for the performance, Credit Agricole's investment bank chief Xavier Musca said in a call, though he cautioned some momentum would likely be lost in the second quarter.
"There will obviously be a form of slowdown," Musca said. "The volatility of the markets is decreasing, the hedging needs of our clients are also decreasing... it is likely that we will not repeat the performance we had in the first quarter."
Market volatility was fuelled by turmoil in the global banking sector, marked by the fall of several U.S. regional banks and Credit Suisse (SIX:CSGN). Those raised concerns about confidence in the financial sector as some European savers look for better returns from their deposits.
Deposit levels were stable in the quarter from a year earlier for the group, Credit Agricole said. The cost of risk -- money set aside for failing loans -- fell to 374 million euros, as concerns linked to the war in Ukraine subsided.
Credit Agricole's exposure to Russia fell 500 million euros from the start of the year to 2.4 billion euros by end-April, deputy CEO Jerome Grivet said, down from 4.6 billion euros when Russia first invaded in early 2022.
Credit Agricole confirmed its 2025 targets.
($1 = 0.9084 euros)