Earnings Roundup: Azteca, Comercio, Ripley - Peru

The Peruvian unit of Mexican microlender Banco Azteca reported a loss of 1.8mn soles (US$638,000) for the second quarter as it continues to find its way in the market since opening its doors at the beginning of 2008, according to filings with local securities regulator Conasev.
The loss was an improvement over the 4.7mn-sol loss in the year-ago quarter, and together with the good results from the first quarter, the bank was able to report a 5.6mn-sol profit during H1.
That profit compares favorably to the loss of 6mn soles reported in 1H09.
However, despite its youth, the quality of the bank's credit portfolio is worsening. It reported an non-performing loan ratio of 9.78% through the end of June compared to 6.16% in June 2009.
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Small Peruvian bank Banco de Comercio reported earnings of 1.8mn soles in the second quarter, up 64% from the year-ago quarter.
The bank saw its financial income rise only slightly to 38.7mn soles, though its financing costs dropped 17% from 1Q09 to 13.4mn soles.
The drop in financing costs helped push Banco de Comercio's gross margin up 21% to 25.4mn soles.
The bank's credit portfolio stands at 973mn soles through the end of June, an increase of 7.3% since December.
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Banco Ripley Peru, the consumer finance arm of the retail giant, reported earnings up 10.5% in Q2 to 11.5mn soles over the year-ago quarter, though income from the half increased 41% to 25.5mn soles.
Gross income for the bank has actually dropped during the year, but as has been the case for many other financial companies, a steep drop in financing costs has led to a fatter bottom line for the bank.
Banco Ripley saw its financing costs drop by 21% in the second quarter compared to 2Q09, with financing costs for the half down by a similar amount.
By Peter Krupa