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UPDATE 1-Nissan confirms record profits for H1

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TOKYO, Nov 19 (Reuters) - Nissan Motor Co, Japan's third-largest automaker, reported its best-ever half-year operating profit on Tuesday, largely confirming preliminary results announced late last month.

Driven by strong sales of new models and lower purchasing costs, group operating profit for the six months to September jumped 84.5 percent to 348.30 billion yen ($2.88 billion), while net profit rose 24.9 percent to 287.71 billion yen.

With five new models launched in the first half, including its first minivehicle, the Moco, Nissan's sales grew 10.3 percent to 3.29 trillion yen, prompting the automaker to raise its full-year sales forecast by 300 billion yen to 6.8 trillion yen.

Likewise, it now expects an operating profit for the full year of 720 billion yen, up 30 percent from a previous forecast. That would represent a 47 percent jump from last year, and exceed Honda Motor Co's operating profit forecast of 620 billion yen.

The preliminary figures released on October 23 had exceeded analysts' rosiest forecasts, pushing Nissan's shares up six percent to 990 yen the next day and lifting those of France's Renault , which owns 44.4 percent of the automaker.

The results were by far the best in Japan's auto industry, prompting several brokerages to upgrade Nissan's stock rating.

Given expectations of robust profit growth, Nissan also said last month it would aim to triple its dividend payout from last year's eight yen by fiscal 2004, starting with a 14-yen dividend for the current year to March.

That makes Nissan's dividend yield the highest among Japanese automakers, according to JP Morgan analyst Steve Usher.

Nissan's share price, however, has declined since the preliminary figures were released, partly due to a weakening in the dollar since the announcement.

It ended up 2.33 percent on Tuesday at 967 yen, compared with a 0.23 percent rise in the Nikkei 225 share average . ($1=121.00 yen)