Union National Bank (UNB), one of the leading domestic banks in the United Arab Emirates, has announced that it has recorded a profit of Dh575 million for the first half of 2009, with a dip of 24% from last year's figures for the same period.

UNB's bank loans and advances surged by 4.7%, and deposits grew by 7.3 per cent.

The lender's operating income figure during the latest period stood at Dh1.01 billion - a slight decrease of three per cent from the first half of fiscal 2008.

The bank's capital adequacy ratio has witnessed a jump of 5.1 per cent in the first six months of the year.

During the latest period, bank's earnings per share stood at Dh0.28, while the cost and income ratio was at 31.3%. The bank did not disclose its second quarter results.

The bank's total assets surged by 9.7% to Dh71 billion at the end of the first half of fiscal 2009.