By Ben Otto

Astra International's first-half net profit rose 16% from a year earlier, as a one-off gain from the sale of a stake in Bank Permata offset weak vehicle sales due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Net profit at the Indonesian automotive giant rose to 11.378 trillion rupiah ($782.8 million), largely due to gains from the sale of its investment in Bank Permata, the company said late Wednesday. Excluding that gain, profit fell 44% to IDR5.497 trillion, primarily due to a steep drop in vehicle sales.

Revenue fell 23% to IDR89.795 trillion as car and motorcycle sales fell 45% and 40% by volume, respectively, during the period, Astra said.

The company said it expects the pandemic and measures taken to contain it to continue to adversely affect results for the rest of this year. 



  Write to Ben Otto at ben.otto@wsj.com