Orient Securities Co. Ltd. published a semi-annual report yesterday that said its net profit fell nearly 42 percent to 535 million yuan (US$79 million) in the first half of 2010. The profit is down from the 922 million yuan (US$136 million) net profit reported a year earlier.

The report showed that Orient Securities' revenue mainly came from traditional businesses. Its revenue reached 1.2 billion yuan (US$180 million) for the first half of this year, including 634 million yuan (US$93.5 million) from securities brokerage and 167 million yuan (US$25 million) from securities underwriting.

The company earned 540 million yuan (US$80 million) from investments and only 16.9 million yuan (US$2.5 million) from asset management. It lost 2.1 million yuan (US$ 310,000) on changes in fair value.

China's business press carried the story above on Wednesday. China.org.cn has not checked the stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.