LONDON â€" The British bank Standard Chartered bucked the industry trend of weak earnings, after it reported net income jumped 11 percent in the first half of the year on strength in Asia and other emerging markets.
The bank, whose activities are primarily based in fast-growing developing economies, said its net income for the six months through June 30 reached $2.86 billion, compared to $2.57 billion in the same period last year.
While many of its peers like Deutsche Bank and Barclays are paring back their operations in the wake of the global financial crisis, Standard Chartered said it was looking to increase its presence in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. The bank said it would open more branches in fast-growing economies, such as India and China, and was looking to exploit the pullback in trading activity from many of its competitors.
Despite signs that many emerging markets are slowing in response to ongoing problems in the West, Standard Chartere d also said it continued to see robust growth across the regions.
“Standard Chartered has performed strongly during the first six months of 2012,†Standard Chartered's chairman, John Peace, said in a statement. “We have a firm grip on the business, with the ability to turn adversity to our advantage, and we will keep investing as we see long-term opportunities for growth.â€
In early afternoon trading in London, the firm's shares rose 5.3 percent.
The bank benefited from a 15 percent rise in operating profit, to $3 billion, in its wholesale banking unit, while operating profit in the firm's consumer banking division fell 11 percent, to $899 million.
The bank said its core Tier 1 capital ratio, a measure of a firm's ability to weather financial shocks, stood at 11.6 percent based on accounting rules known as Basel III, slightly down on the same period last year.
