CITIC Pacific Posts 50% Increase in Earnings

(Beijing) – The chairman of Citic Pacific Ltd., a subsidiary of China's biggest state-owned investment company CITIC, said the company has recovered from two-years of lagging profits, after the company recently reported 50 percent year-on-year growth in 2010 profit.

The Hong Kong-listed company announced on March 3 that its 2010 profit reached HK$ 8.9 billion, rising 50 percent from the previous year. Sales of its non-core assets generated HK$ 3.08 billion in profits.

According to the company's financial report, Citic Pacific's net debt to asset ratio stood at 46 percent. But the company's Chairman Chang Zhenming said the rate is expected to be reduced after the launch of the company's mining project in Western Australia, as well as sales of new property projects.