The United States

Business activity ⁽¹⁾
(Year-on-year change at constant exchange rate. Data as of 30-09-2017)

⁽¹⁾ Excluding repos.

Net interest income/ATAs
(Percentage. Constant exchange rate)

Operating income
(Million euros at constant exchange rate)

⁽¹⁾ At current exchange rate: +22.5%.

Net attributable profit
(Million euros at constant exchange rate)

⁽¹⁾ At current exchange rate: +41.7%.

Breakdown of performing loans under management ⁽¹⁾
(30-09-2017)

Breakdown of customer funds under management ⁽¹⁾
(30-09-2017)

Macro and industry trends

According to the latest information from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), U.S. GDP increased by 3.1% in the second quarter of 2017 in annualized terms, recovering from the significant moderation of the previous two quarters. Although uncertainty remains high, due to both the economic policy and the recent effect of natural disasters, the economic fundamentals are still consistent with the continued moderate growth over the coming quarters. Overall, the advance estimate by BBVA Research is still slightly higher than 2% for 2017, supporting a pick-up in investment, which should offset the moderation expected in consumption as a result of higher inflation and a more gradual improvement than expected in the labor market.

With regard to the currency market, the dollar's depreciating trend against the euro has heightened year to date, especially since the second quarter. This trend reflects the Fed's restatement of the gradual normalization of its monetary policy (in a context of moderate growth), combined with a stronger than expected economy in Europe over recent quarters, together with messages from the ECB anticipating the gradual withdrawal of stimuli over 2018. Given the economic performance in the two economies and the commitment of their central banks in the short term, the exchange rate is expected to remain relatively stable.

The U.S. financial system continues in good shape overall. According to the Fed's latest available data for September, the total volume of bank credit has grown slightly above 4% in year-on-year terms, with different growth in the main items (commercial loans up 6.6%; residential mortgage loans up 3.2%; consumer finance up 8.3%). This growth is combined with a further reduction in the system's overall NPL ratio, which at the close of the second quarter stood at 1.8%. The trend for total deposits in the system continues slightly upward, with a year-on-year growth of 2.6% (information also through September).

Activity

All the comments below on rates of change, for both activity and earnings, will be given at constant exchange rate, unless expressly stated otherwise. These rates, together with changes at current exchange rate, can be seen in the attached tables of financial statements and relevant business indicators.

Lending activity (performing loans under management) continues the trend to moderation which began in the second half of 2015. This trend is the result of the area's selective growth strategy in the most profitable portfolios and segments that represent more efficient capital consumption. As a result, as of 30-Sep-2017, there was a decrease of 1.1% overall in this heading since the close of 2016; although there has been a slight increase of 0.6% over the quarter, as the volume of new production has exceeded that of repayments. By portfolios, growth is primarily focused on consumer loans (up 1.9% in the last nine months and up 1.5% over the quarter) and in some categories of commercial loans (commercial real-estate, mortgage-backed loans, and above all credit cards).

The main asset quality indicators continue to be positive, both over the quarter and so far this year. The NPL ratio closed September at 1.2% and the NPL coverage ratio closed at 119%.

Customer deposits under management declined over the last nine months (by 4.4%), although they rose slightly by 0.5%, over the quarter, in line with customer lending.

Results

The United States has generated a cumulative net attributable profit through September 2017 of €422m, significantly higher than in the same period last year, primarily due to more recurring revenues, operating costs held in check and lower impairment losses on financial assets. The most relevant aspects of the area's income statement are as follows:

• Net interest income continues to perform positively, with a cumulative figure rising by 14.0% in year-on-year terms. This is due to the combined result of the strategic measures adopted by BBVA Compass to improve loan yields and reduce the cost of liabilities (deposits and wholesale funding), as well as the Fed's interest-rate hikes (December 2016, March and June 2017).
• Cumulative income from fees and commissions up to September reported an increase of 3.9%. There was an outstanding performance in practically all items, except those generated by investment banking and advisory services, which declined year-on-year.
• Reduction of 32.8% in NTI compared with the figure for the same period in the previous year. The positive performance of the Global Markets unit, particularly in the first part of the semester, was below the figure for capital gains from portfolio sales in the same period in 2016.
• Containment of operating expenses, which rose only 1.6% in year-on-year terms. Increased general expenses have largely been offset by a decline in amortization of intangible assets. Personnel expenses decreased 0.4% for the same period.
• Impairment losses on financial assets were significantly down on the same period in 2016 (by 2.3%), when (above all in the first quarter) provisions were allocated in response to the rating downgrade of some companies operating in the energy (exploration & production) and metal & mining (basic materials) sectors. However, there was a rise in the third quarter of 2017, versus the previous quarter, closely linked to the impact of the recent natural disasters in the country. Provisions associated with potentially impacted loans as a result of these natural disasters, amount to €54m. As a result, the cumulative cost of risk as of 30-Sep-2017 was 0.45%.

Financial statements and relevant business indicators
(Million euros and percentage)