The Financial Post reports in its Wednesday edition that Bank of Nova Scotia's net income rose 25 per cent to nearly $2.2-billion in the fiscal first quarter, despite a rise in provisions for credit losses that exceeded analyst expectations. The Post's Denise Paglinawan writes that the bank's diluted earnings per share were $1.68 for the quarter ended Jan. 31, compared with $1.35 in the same period a year ago, when net income was $1.76-billion. The figure beat the consensus of $1.61 per share, primarily due to higher revenues. Scotiabank saw strong growth in its international banking segment, which posted net income of $768-million, up $102-million from the same period a year ago. The bank said this growth was driven by higher net interest income, non-interest income and the positive impact of foreign currency translation, but was partly offset by higher provisions for credit losses, non-interest expenses and income taxes. "We note that the wholesale contribution to international banking's results were unusually strong this quarter at $372 million, up 24 per cent year-over-year and well above Bank of Nova Scotia's guidance of $250 million per quarter," National Bank analyst Gabriel Dechaine said in a note to clients.