Peru's Credicorp says 3Q profits up 31.4 pct

LIMA, Peru (AP) — Peruvian financial holding company Credicorp Ltd. says profit rose 31.4 percent in the third quarter as growth in local currency loans and its insurance business offset lower interest rates.

In a report Thursday, the Lima-based company says net income in July-September was $122 million, or $1.53 a share, up from $92.6 million, or $1.16 a share, in the same span of 2008.

Net interest income totaled $215 million, up from $200 million the previous year but down from $234 million in the previous quarter — after Peru's central bank slashed interest rates to boost stagnant growth.

Credicorp's insurance business grew 119 percent from a year ago.

Credicorp stock traded in the U.S. held steady at $72 a share, before the earnings report.