BOC 2012 net profits up 12.2%

Bank of China (BOC), the nation's third-largest lender by asset value, said Tuesday that its net profits in 2012 rose 12.2 percent to reach 139.43 billion yuan (22.24 billion U.S. dollars). Its assets totaled 12.68 trillion yuan, while its total liabilities stood at 11.82 trillion yuan, according to an annual report filed to the Shanghai Stock Exchange. BOC's net interest income rose 12.67 percent from the previous year to 256.97 billion yuan. Other income, including commissions and income from services fees, rose 8.96 percent to 109.21 billion yuan. The bank's capital adequacy ratio stood at 13.63 percent, 0.65 percentage points higher than that of the previous year. The bank's non-performing loans outstanding increased by 2.17 billion yuan to 65.45 billion yuan by the end of 2012, with the bank's non-performing loan ratio falling 0.05 percentage points from the previous year to 0.95 percent. The bank's earnings per share stood at 0.5 yuan, up 0.05 yuan from a year earlier. The bank's board of directors proposed a pre-tax year-end cash dividend of 0.175 yuan per share.