The Hong Kong Mortgage Corporation posted a 55.3 times year-on-year surge in first-half profit to HK$3 billion amid a rebounding property market.
The robust performance is also thanks to the narrowed accounting loss in the annuity business due to a decrease in new policies written, as well as an increase in investment income from placements with the Exchange Fund in light of an enlarged investment size and higher rates of return, the company said.
Excluding the accounting results of HKMC Annuity, the impact of property price changes on the long-term reverse mortgage business, and the consolidation adjustments in respect of loan portfolios with insurance cover from HKMC Insurance, its adjusted profit was HK$1.08 billion for the first six months, up 23.9 percent over the same period from a year ago.
Its annualised return on equity was 7.2 percent, representing a one-percentage-point increase from the prior year.
The amount of its New Mortgage Insurance Programme loans fell 11.4 percent to HK$15.5 billion, among which 73 percent were secured on properties in the secondary market.
Regarding its annuity business, the company said it had taken a total of 3,528 policies, with total premiums of approximately HK$2.8 billion.
