China's AgBank posts 3.48% rise in first-half profit

AGRICULTURAL Bank of China (AgBank), the country’s third-largest lender by assets, reported a 3.48 per cent rise in first-half net profit on Tuesday (Aug 29).

AgBank said net profit for the first six months of the year totalled 133.23 billion yuan (S$24.7 billion), up from a restated 128.75 billion yuan a year earlier.

“Looking forward into the second half of the year, as China’s economy has strong resilience and potential of development, its fundamentals of long-term sustainability will remain unchanged,” the bank said in a filing.

The bank said it will improve financial services for the real economy, provide more support to the manufacturing industry and tech innovation.

The bank’s net interest margin – a key gauge of profitability – stood at 1.66 per cent at end-June, down from 1.7 per cent at the end of March.

AgBank’s non-performing loan ratio came in at 1.35 per cent at the end of the second quarter, down from 1.37 per cent at the end of March, the filing showed. REUTERS