Barclays Profits Fall After New £400m PPI Hit

Barclays (LSE: BARC.L - news) has blamed additional PPI mis-selling costs after reporting a 21% fall in half-year profits to just over £2bn.

The bank said it was taking a further £400m provision for covering the costs associated with the Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) scandal.

The bulk of its profit woes were costs associated with the performance of its non-core operations as it focuses on restructuring its UK and US operation.

Barclays core business profit before tax rose 19% on last year to £4bn.

Personal (LSE: PGH.L - news) banking income increased 1% to £1.9bn, driven by improved deposit margins and balance growth, whilst Barclaycard income decreased 5% to £954m.

This is primarily due to the fact there is now a cap on how much banks can charge customers for using the credit card.

Chief (Taiwan OTC: 3345.TWO - news) executive Jes Staley remained optimistic about the bank's second quarter performance.

He said: "The strategy to build a transatlantic, consumer, corporate and investment bank with a global reach is in very good shape.

"This has been a quarter of very encouraging progress against our strategy. Our core business, Barclays UK and Barclays Corporate & International, continue to thrive."