China Construction Bank Corp. (CCB), the country's second-largest commercial lender by assets, reported its net profit jumped 71.34 percent to 58.69 billion yuan (8.59 billion U.S. dollars) in the first half.

The Beijing-based bank's earnings per share was 0.25 yuan in the first half, representing an increase of 0.1 yuan over the same period a year earlier, the lender said in its half-year report.

Its business income during January to June was 135.19 billion yuan, up 36.12 percent over the same period last year.

The bank said both its lending and fee-related business had grown strongly, driven by a boom that is expected to see China's economy expand by at least 9 percent this year.

Total assets of CCB topped seven trillion yuan by June, up 6.96 percent over last year.

(Xinhua News Agency August 25, 2008)