Commercial Bank posts exceptional first half results

CONTINUED MOME- NTUM of its fund-based operations have generated strong growth for the Commercial Bank Group enabling it to post exceptional pre and post tax profits for the first half of 2007.

In results released to the Colombo Stock Exchange this week, the Commercial Bank Group has reported a pre-tax profit of Rs. 3,422 million for the six months ending June 30, 2007, a growth of Rs. 804 million or 30.72 per cent over the corresponding period in 2006.

The post-tax profit of the Group at Rs. 2,173 million reflects a growth of 44.41 per cent over the first half of last year.

Post-tax profit for the second quarter of the current year too surpassed Rs. 1 billion mark, the second successive time that the Group has notched up a billion rupees in post-tax profit for a three month period.

Commercial Bank’s Senior Deputy General Manager - Finance and Planning, Ranjith Samaranayake said the rate of post-tax profit growth was higher than the growth achieved in pre-tax profit primarily due to the Group’s tax liability increasing by just Rs. 136 million (12.20 per cent over the first half of 2006) due to a reversal of Rs.246 million on account of the deferred tax provision in the first half of 2007.

He said the growth in pre-tax profit was facilitated by the Group’s net interest income increasing by Rs. 2.0 billion or 58.00 per cent in the period under review, to total Rs. 5.4 billion.