SocGen posts ?2.15bn in profits and forecasts ?3bn

Société Générale (SocGen) posted a surge in
net income for the first half of 2010 at €2.15bn ($2.8bn) compared
to €31m in 2009. 

SocGen forecast €3bn in profit for 2010, but
the bank sounded a cautious note and said the economy remains
fragile. 

“In Europe, in particular, growth prospects
remain moderate”, SocGen said in a statement.

SocGen’s domestic retail banking division
posted net banking income of €591m in the first half of 2010, a 15%
rise from the comparable period of 2009.

Elsewhere the opening of over 53,000 accounts
from each of SocGen’s domestic retail banking brands (Societe
Generale, Credit du Nord and Boursorama) made for robust growth in
the second quarter of 2010.

In terms of international retail banking, net
income fell 3.2% to €239m in the first half of 2010, compared to
the year-ago period.

At the end of June, outstanding loans at the
international arm stood at €64.1bn, up 44% on the year-ago period
while deposits stood at €65.2bn, up 5.8% from the year-ago
period.

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