MEXICO CITY, July 23 (Reuters) -

Mexico's Grupo Financiero Banorte reported on

Tuesday a 7% climb in second-quarter net profit from the

year-ago period, citing double-digit growth in its loan book.

Net profit for the quarter hit 14.02 billion pesos ($766.59

million), as its active loan book topped 1 trillion pesos for

the fourth consecutive quarter.

The results were just under an estimate from analysts

compiled by LSEG of 14.65 billion pesos in net profit.

Net interest income, the difference between what banks

earn on loans and dole out in deposits, grew 12% year-over-year

on the larger loan book.

Commercial loans leaped nearly 12% compared to the

year-ago quarter while corporate loans were up 23% and

government loans up 11%.

Return on equity grew 236 basis points year-over-year to

23.3%.