Citic Securities net dips on write-off

Citic Securities, the mainland's largest brokerage firm, posted a 6.2 per cent fall in net profit for the first half, after a 200 million yuan (HK$251.6 million) write-off amid a lacklustre investment environment.

The state-owned firm said yesterday net profit was 2.11 billion yuan for the six months to June, while revenue, including fees from equity and debt underwriting and income from interest and investment, rose 13.82 per cent to 7.32 billion yuan.

Impairment losses on "available-for-sale" financial assets, which contain listed and non-listed equity and debt securities, amounted to 196.5 million yuan, while write-offs on uncollected receivables, such as unpaid bills, stood at 150,000 yuan.

In a separate note, the board of directors approved the nomination of Liu Lefei as an executive director.

Liu, 40, the son of the head of the Communist Party's secretariat, Liu Yunshan, is currently the chief executive of a Citic industry investment fund with five billion yuan in assets under management, according to consulting firm Z-Ben Advisors.

Liu Yunshan, a former party propaganda chief, was promoted to the Politburo Standing Committee at the party congress last year.