Bajaj Housing Finance India increases its profits in the second quarter thanks to stable demand for home loans

India's most valuable housing finance bank Bajaj on Monday reported a 21% rise in second-quarter profit as loan demand remained strong.

The company, a unit of non-banking finance firm Bajaj, reported its first quarterly profit since going public in September at $782 million, attracting strong interest from investors.

Profit after tax rose to 5.46 billion rupees (about $65 million) in the three months ended September 30, compared to 4.51 billion rupees in the same period last year.

The demand for homes is increasing in the world's most populous country, which increases the demand for home loans.

Residential property prices are expected to rise steadily over the next few years, driven by demand for premium properties, which constitute a large portion of Bajaj Housing Finance's business.

Loan volume rose 27% year-on-year to Rs898.78 billion in the September quarter. Total assets under management increased by 26% to more than one trillion rupees.

Net interest income, or the difference between interest earned and interest paid, rose 13% to 7.13 billion rupees.

Asset quality deteriorated. The share of non-performing loans in total loans rose to 0.29% at the end of September, compared to 0.24% a year ago.

Bajaj Housing Finance shares have fallen by 17% since its listing and fell by about 2% before the results were announced.

Rivals PNB Housing Finance and LIC Housing Finance are expected to announce their second-quarter results on October 24 and 28, respectively.

($1 = 84.0450 Indian Rupees)