S.Africa's Standard Bank sees FY profit up 22 pct

JOHANNESBURG, (Reuters)

Standard Bank Group Ltd, Africa's biggest lender by assets, said on Thursday full-year profit probably rose as much as 22 percent, largely in line with analysts' forecasts.

Standard Bank said diluted headline EPS likely grew by between 18 and 22 percent, in line with the 19.5 percent average increase in a survey of 13 analysts by Reuters.

South African banks have been helped by a decline in bad debts, which is helping to offset weak demand for loans in Africa's biggest economy.

Smaller rival Absa Group posted a 21 percent increase in full-year profit earlier this month.

Johannesburg-based Standard Bank, which is 20 percent owned by Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, will report its results on March 8.

The bank said on Wednesday it would be cooperating with Japan's second largest-lender by assets Mizuho Financial Group on bringing more Japanese clients to Africa, confirming an earlier Reuters report.

Shares of Standard Bank, which has operations in at least 17 sub-Saharan countries, are up over 10 percent so far this year, outpacing a 6.4 percent rise by the blue-chip Top-40 index.