The Agricultural Bank of China on Monday posted operating profits of over 42.4 billion yuan (5.3 billion U.S. dollars) in 2005, 10.5 billion yuan more than the previous year.

Despite the surge, a bank statement said the ABC's non-performing loan ratio remained a whopping 26.17 percent, edging down a mere 0.56 percentage points from a year earlier.

Many established foreign banks report a one to two percent NPL ratio. Analysts say the ABC piled up a mountain of bad debts after reckless -- usually government-ordered -- lending to the rural sector and state-owned firms over the last 20 years or so.

Three other state banks have either converted to joint-stock companies or sold shares to public investors as a way to strengthen corporate governance and upgrade their business, but the ABC reform package remains unclear.

The ABC said it held nearly a third of the national market for savings deposits, and its total assets rose 18.87 percent to 4.77 trillion yuan by the end of last year.

The bank employs 479,000 people, a much higher figure compared with its foreign rivals.

A spokesman for the ABC declined to comment further on the bank's NPL ratio or any possible reforms.

Source: Xinhua