Amlak records 155% rise in H1 net profit

Islamic mortgage company Amlak Finance has reported 155 per cent increase in net profit for the first half of 2008 at Dh269 million against Dh106m for the corresponding period last year.

Amlak's revenue for the half year of 2008 was posted at Dh620m, up 114 per cent against the half year of 2007, with the company's property financing activities contributing 52 per cent of the total revenue.

Total assets, as of June 2008, stood at Dh14.2 billion, a growth of 133 per cent compared to Dh6.1bn as at June last year.

Amlak posted a 74 per cent jump in net income to Dh142.26m in the three months ended June 30.

The quarterly profit, which Reuters calculated based on half-yearly earnings released by the firm, was the highest on record, according to data going back to 2003.

Driven by a real estate boom in the second-largest Arab economy, Amlak's full-year profit growth would likely exceed a previous forecast of 80 per cent, Chief Executive Arif Alharmi said.

Amlak more than doubled profit in 2007 to Dh301m.

"We expect to have 90 per cent growth in net profit year-on-year," Alharmi said.

The value of Amlak's property investment portfolio would buoy full-year profit growth, he said. "The mortgage business would continue to do well as well as the real estate business," he said.

Total volume of business reached Dh17.1bn as at half year 2008 consisting of Dh8.6bn of financing and investing assets, with a further Dh2.4bn of financing commitments extended to customers, marking an increase of 80 per cent compared to half year 2007, and a portfolio of Dh6bn of real estate investments. "There were indeed great efforts and major planning that led us to celebrate today these remarkable figures," said Nasser bin Hassan Al Shaikh, Chairman, Amlak Finance.