macquarie bank forecasts record first half ear

Macquarie Bank Forecasts Record First-Half Earnings (Update1)

By Robert Fenner

Sept. 14 (Bloomberg) -- Macquarie Bank Ltd., Australia's biggest securities firm, forecast first-half earnings will rise to a record on growth in investment banking fees and specialist funds it manages.

Net income will be ``up strongly'' in the six months ending Sept. 30 from the year earlier A$730 million ($610 million) profit, Sydney-based Macquarie said in a statement today.

Recent volatility in global share markets is boosting trading volumes in Macquarie's equities and treasury units, and the real estate group has sold some assets at a profit. Assets under management rose to A$225 billion at Aug. 31, from A$197 billion at the end of April.

``All groups are operating profitably, there are no unusual provisions or write-downs,'' Chief Executive Officer Allan Moss said in the statement