Profits for foreign bank branches operating in Australia echo a wider picture of a robust banking sector, with a combined profit for this segment of the industry of A$1.44 billion over the year to September 2015.This is up more than $400 million, or around 40 per cent, from a sector profit of $998 million over the year to September 2014.Quarterly data from the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority, covering all banks, provides a rare window into the performance of 41 entities regulated as foreign bank branches.APRA's stats show that credit quality for foreign banks is a little better than for the wider industry, with the ratio of impaired facilities to loans and advances at 0.4 per cent, compared with 0.5 per cent for all banks.