BRI H1 net profit up 13%

BRI H1 net profit up 13%

Dow Jones, Jakarta

Bank Rakyat Indonesia said on Wednesday its first-half net profit rose 13 percent from the year-earlier period because of an increase in interest income.

Net profit for the January-to-June period rose to Rp 1.94 trillion from Rp 1.72 trillion a year earlier, Bank Rakyat said in a statement.

The bank's expansion in consumer lending helped fuel a 9.4 percent growth in net interest income to Rp 6.05 trillion during the first half, from Rp 5.53 trillion a year earlier, the bank said.

At the end of June, the bank's total outstanding loan portfolio stood at Rp 68.95 trillion, up from Rp 55.04 trillion at the end of June 2004.

The lending-to-deposit ratio rose to 77.06 percent, among the highest in the banking industry, from 69.11 percent.

BRI's net interest margin stood at 12.12 percent, compared with 12.18 percent a year earlier.

The bank's capital adequacy ratio, which is the ratio between its own equity capital and risk-weighted assets, however fell to 17 percent at end-June, down from 19.33 percent a year ago.

The bank said the fall in the capital adequacy ratio was due to the increase in lending.

The bank's total assets rose to Rp 113.47 trillion from Rp 99.28 trillion a year earlier.

BRI is Indonesia's fourth-largest lender by assets after Bank Mandiri, Bank Central Asia and Bank Negara Indonesia.

BRI, which is 69.5 percent owned by the government, focuses on promoting the country's microfinance and small business sectors.