MELBOURNE (Standard&Poor's) May 6, 2004--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services said today that Westpac Banking Corp.'s (Westpac; AA-/Stable/A-1+) reported solid earnings growth for the half year to March 31, 2004, with underlying earnings (operating profit before tax and bad debts) rising 4% to A$1,869 million over the September 2003 second-half result. "Reasonable credit growth, particularly in mortgage and business lending, and good cost containment are two key elements supporting Westpac's half-year profit result, which is in line with Standard&Poor's expectations, given the supportive operating environment and the bank's articulated business strategy," said Standard&Poor's credit analyst, Peter Sikora, Financial Services Ratings. "A significant contributor to the improvement in the bank's half-year earnings, however, was related to
