In line with previous years' practice, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia yesterday published its unaudited cash earnings for the three months to 31 March.  Earnings of about A$2.3 billion were disclosed, a result slightly below analysts' expectations but almost five per cent higher than the group's result for 3Q15.In a note with its announcement, the bank observed that the "cash earnings" measure is used by management "to present a clear view of the group's underlying operating results, excluding items that introduce volatility and/or one-off distortions of the group's current period performance".Non-cash items, such as hedging and IFRS volatility, are calculated consistently period on period and do not discriminate between positive and negative adjustments, CBA noted.Statutory net profit (also on an unaudited basis) for the same period was approximately $2.4 billion.Dragging the result down, in a trend matched by its Big Four peers, were CBA's loan impairment expenses of $427 million. This equates to 25 basis points of gross loans and acceptances, or 23 basis points over the six months to 31 March 2016. In each of FY 2014 and FY 2015 the comparable metric was 16 bps.The result, while approximate, shows impaired loans have moved 51 per cent higher than the first half's average and 67 per cent higher than a year ago, according to a client note from NAB's credit analysts.Nonetheless, the movements are off one of the lowest bases of default rates in the OECD and, by the bank's own admission, the increase "is largely due to a small number of exposures in the group's institutional lending portfolio which became impaired or exhibited heightened signs of stress, including a single relatively large domestic exposure with a syndicate of lenders including other Australian major banks". Consequently, the group's "troublesome and impaired assets" were also slightly higher in the quarter, at $6.3 billion. (Note:  CBA's use of the phrase "…a single large exposure …" can be compared with half-year comments from the other Big Four banks' results briefings, where they reported multiple such exposures.)In other headline results:•    group net interest margin was largely unchanged from 1H16 at 2.04 (from 2.06); •    operating expense growth continued to be driven by business growth and investment, as well as by ongoing regulatory and compliance costs;•    domestic business lending growth remained at mid-single digit levels (for 12 months to March 2016); and•    Across the Tasman, in Auckland, ASB customer advances grew ahead of market.On the consumer side, arrears rates were in line with expectations for the quarter. Portfolio home loan arrears remained low, notwithstanding areas of WA and Queensland that continue to be affected by the mining downturn. Personal loan arrears remained elevated, with seasonal factors also evident in the quarter.