RBS narrows its losses

THE Royal Bank of Scotland has narrowed its first quarter loss thanks to lower bad debt charges.

In the three months to March 31 the bank, which is 83% owned by the taxpayer, made a net loss of £248m compared with £902m a year ago.

Impairments fell 14% to £2.68bn, down from £3.1bn in the last quarter of 2009.

The bank posted an operating profit of £713m but profits from its global banking and markets arm halved to £1.47bn.

In a statement chief executive Stephen Hester said: “Last year we began implementing one of the most significant corporate restructurings ever undertaken.  We said the plan would take five years to implement. Today we show that we remain on track for delivery.”

The bank is a major employer in the North West with some 15,000 staff in the region. Many are based at Spinningfields, Manchester.