Lippo forecasts 2005 profit to up

Lippo forecasts 2005 profit to up

JAKARTA: PT Bank Lippo, an Indonesian lender controlled by Malaysia's Khazanah Nasional Bhd., said it expects profit this year to rise by about 85 percent because of higher lending to consumers.

Net income may rise to Rp 500 billion (US$50 million) this year from Rp 270.6 billion in 2004, Lippo President Joseph Luhukay told reporters in Jakarta on Monday.

"We will be aggressive next year too," he said. "We will boost retail and consumer business."

Bank Lippo is boosting lending as an expanding economy encourages borrowing by companies and consumers. Southeast Asia's largest economy is expected to expand as much as 6 percent this year, after 5.1 percent growth in 2004, according to the government.

Khazanah Nasional, Malaysia's state investment company, said on Oct. 6 it received approval to buy a controlling stake in Bank Lippo, paving the way for an offer to buy the rest of the Indonesian lender from Swissasia Global, an investor group controlled by Raiffeisen Zentralbank, an Austrian bank. -- Bloomberg