The bank on Wednesday posted first-quarter pre-tax profit of £2.26bn, up 46% and better than the £1.95bn average of analyst forecasts. Net income, generated after deposit payouts, rose 15% to £4.7b Customer deposits fell by £2.2bn to £473.1bn, including a reduction in retail current account balances of £3.5bn, partly driven by seasonal customer outflows, including tax payments, higher spend and a more competitive market, Lloyds said. Lloyds increased bad loan provisions to £243m provision to cover potential losses after reporting a "modest" rises in arrears, mainly in commercial banking loans and mortgages. This compared with the £177m set aside in the same period a year ago but below the £356m forecast by analysts. Matt Britzman, equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown said: "Lloyds is a good barometer for the overall health of the UK consumer and its smaller businesses, and they're proving remarkably resilient in the face of mounting cost pressures.