The shipping sector and the improved conditions in the business form part of the reason that DNB's profit in the first quarter is higher than it was in the same period last year.

The Norwegian bank has done numerous things to improve its shipping portfolio, and these measures are now paying off. One measure has been to cut some of the non-performing loans, to reduce the DNB's exposure to the fluctuations of the business, while the bank has also tried to monitor its shipping loans more stringently than it has in the past. The bank is also working hard with the major shipping loans it has granted.