ICBC's 2012 net profits up 14.5%

BEIJING -- The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), the world's largest lender by market value, said Wednesday that its net profits for 2012 rose 14.5 percent year on year to reach 238.7 billion yuan ($38.07 billion), cementing its position as the world's most profitable bank.

The bank's net interest income, or revenue from borrowers minus interest paid to depositors, rose 15.2 percent from the previous year to 417.8 billion yuan, according to the company's annual report filed to the Shanghai Stock Exchange.

Commissions and income from services fees gained 3.8 percent from a year earlier to 111.9 billion yuan.

As of the end of last year, the bank's total assets amounted to 17.5 trillion yuan, while its outstanding loans totaled 14.88 trillion yuan, the world's largest in both areas.

The banks' non-performing loan ratio came in at 0.85 percent, down 0.09 percentage points from a year earlier.

The board of directors proposed a pre-tax year-end cash dividend of 2.39 yuan for every ten shares that will be subject to shareholder approval.