Investec lifts profit slightly

Johannesburg - South African investment bank and asset manager Investec [JSE:INL] reported a 1% rise in nine-month net operating income on Friday and said it remained uncertain about the pace of an economic recovery.

The country's fifth-biggest bank by assets said core loans and advances climbed 7% to £s;17.4bn for the nine months to end-December, while defaults and impairments increased in line with expectations.

Like its peers, Investec has been hit by rising bad debts as customers struggle to pay back loans in difficult economic conditions.

Investec, which is also listed in London, posted lower first-half profit in November, but said impairments at its units had probably peaked.

The firm said on Friday business in its key geographies - Australia, Britain and South Africa - remained profitable and it had £7.4bn of cash and near cash available.

- Reuters