Nov 6 (Reuters) - Macquarie Group reported its highest-ever first-half profit on Friday, driven by a surge in income from its commodities and trading division.
Australia's top investment bank said net profit attributable to shareholders was A$2.48 billion ($1.72 billion) for the six months ended September 30, ahead of the Visible Alpha consensus estimate of A$2.32 billion and last year's A$1.66 billion.
It is Macquarie's best first-half result since the investment bank went public almost two decades
ago, according to Reuters calculations.
The investment bank's commodities and global markets division, its biggest profit-generating business, reported a six-month net profit contribution of A$2.03 billion, up 83% from last year.
That was mainly driven by "higher net interest and trading income across all major business lines, due to increased client activity and trading opportunities across specific commodities and financial markets," Macquarie said.
Its asset management division also reported a 28% growth in profit contribution, while contribution from the banking and financial services segment rose 6% due to growth in the loan portfolio and deposits.
It declared an interim dividend of A$3.25 per share, higher than A$2.80 a share declared last year.
($1 = 1.4382 Australian dollars)
(Reporting by Sameer Manekar and Roshan Thomas in Bengaluru; Editing by Leroy Leo)
