* H1 headline EPS 602.3 cents vs 638.5 cents
* Net interest income R11.9 bln vs R11.62 bln
* Credit losses jump nearly 40 pct
* Shares down 3 pct this year, underperforming rivals
By Helen Nyambura-Mwaura
JOHANNESBURG, July 27 (Reuters) – Absa Group, the
South African unit of Barclays, is looking for
sub-Saharan acquisitions to boost future profit after reporting
a drop in first-half earnings on Friday, hit by souring
mortgages at home.
Absa, South Africa’s third-largest bank and its biggest
retail lender, has been slow to capitalise on Barclays’ wide
presence on the continent, trailing behind fast-moving rival
Standard Bank.
It is now scouring east Africa for a possible acquisition
early next year and is scheduled to start insurance operations
in Zambia in August, after launching similar operations in
Mozambique and Botswana.
“East Africa is our next focus area and we are evaluating
acquisition opportunities in this region with a target date of
first quarter 2013,” Chief Executive Maria Ramos said at the
bank’s first-half results presentation in suburban Johannesburg.
Continued…
