ING Group's banking profits were hit hard by higher loan loss provisions but overall the Dutch financial services provider beat forecasts and maintained its year-end outlook.

Banking profits before taxes fell €299m ($292m) to €1.08bn in the first half compared with the same period last year. The company blamed the decline on a "strong rise in risk costs". This led to loan loss provisions being almost doubled to €625m from €350m a year ago and took the provisioning level to 52 basis points of credit risk-weighted assets. Ewald Kist, chairman, said: "Overall risk costs were sharply higher as a result of a high level of corporate defaults."