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