BankAmerica Income Up 63%

SAN FRANCISCO — BankAmerica Corp. today reported a 63% jump in its first-quarter income to $109 million, its third consecutive quarterly profit and fresh evidence that the California giant is on the road to recovery.

Chairman A. W. Clausen said the bank’s net credit losses dropped to $92 million in the first quarter from $128 million in the fourth quarter and $315 million in the year-ago period. On a per-share basis, quarterly earnings rose to 56 cents--well above industry analysts’ expectations--from 34 cents in the comparable 1987 period. BankAmerica’s assets, however, shrank to $94.3 billion from $99 billion in the first quarter of 1987, reflecting the bank’s asset sales in 1987.