São Paulo – The Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES) posted a net profit of 702 million reals (US$ 383 million) in the first half this year, representing a decrease of 83% in comparison with the same period last year. The reduction in results of share ownership, which went down from 4.8 billion reals (US$ 2.6 billion) in the first six months of 2008 to 1.3 billion reals (US$ 709 million) in the same period this year, was one of the main contributing factors to the reduction, according to information disclosed by the BNDES.
Unfavourable market conditions have contributed to the interruption of the stock selling process. According to a release issued by the BNDES, another factor that contributed to the negative result was increased spending on provisions for credit risk, which totalled 1.1 billion reals (US$ 600 million) in June this year, as against 400 million reals (US$ 218 million) in the same month of 2008.
Among the positive factors pointed out by the BNDES is the increase of 2.7 billion reals (US$ 1.4 billion) in gross revenues from financial intermediation in the first half, a figure that exceeded the 2.1 billion reals (US$ 1.1 billion) recorded from January to June last year. The release issued by the Bank also highlights that the financial crisis has not yet affected the quality of the BNDES’ portfolio. In June, 97% of companies funded by the institution had credit risk ratings ranging from AA to C.
In June, the Bank’s net equity totalled 24.7 billion reals (US$ 13.4 billion), corresponding to 40.1 billion reals (US$ 21.8 billion) in reference equity, a result lower than the 42.5 billion reals (US$ 23.1 billion) recorded as of December 31st, 2008. The reduction took place as a consequence of the distribution of complementary dividends.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
