Mall developer SM Prime Holdings Inc. has posted a nine-percent increase in its net profit attributable to the parent firm for the first half of the year to P2.6 billion from P2.4 billion last year mainly driven by robust revenue growth during the period.

In a statement, SM Prime said revenues during the first semester increased by 17 percent to P6.1 billion, while operating income grew 20 percent to P3.54 billion from P2.95 billion.

Operating expenses increased by 14 percent to P2.5 billion from P2.2 billion.

For the second quarter of the year, SM Prime recorded an increase of nine percent in net income to P1.3 billion from P1.2 billion in the same quarter last year.

Gross revenues went up by 19 percent to P3.2 billion from P2.7 billion.

The company said rentals from new SM Supermalls opened in 2005 and 2006, namely, SM City San Lazaro, SM Supercenter Valenzuela, SM Supercenter Molino, SM City Sta. Rosa, SM City Clark and the Mall of Asia boosted the company’s rental revenues by 20 percent to P2.7 billion from last year’s of P2.2 billion in the second quarter.

The new malls provided an additional gross floor area of 862,215 square meters. Currently, these new malls have an average occupancy level of 95 percent.