ANZ Group posts record annual profit

By NZPA

Thursday 24th October 2002

ANZ Bank posted a full-year operating profit of $A2.32 billion ($NZ2.68) billion for the group, the company said today.

That was a 24 percent rise on the previous year's profit. ANZ's final dividend will also rise, to A46c from A40c.

ANZ, Australia's fourth-largest lender, said it was not looking for much respite from the troubled global economy and expected to see an increase in domestic consumer defaults.

The record annual profit, cracking the $2 billion level for the first time, included $A170 million from the sale of businesses to the joint venture with the ING Group as well as $A159 million after tax from the settlement of the long standing dispute with India's National Housing Bank.

It is well ahead of analysts expectations, which centred on $A2.15 billion.

Chief executive John MacFarlane said the 2003 target of 10 percent earnings per share growth remained unchanged after today's result.

He said that despite global economic prospects for the year ahead likely to remain subdued, he did expect the Australian and New Zealand economies to continue to perform steadily.

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