March 20 (Reuters) - New Zealand's Fonterra Co-operative FCG.NZ posted a rise in first-half profit on Thursday, citing strong performance at its core ingredients business and improving margins in the consumer operations.
The world's biggest dairy exporter reported profit after tax of NZ$729 million ($422.97 million) for the six months ended January 31, 8% higher than the NZ$674 million it posted a year earlier.
($1 = 1.7235 New Zealand dollars)
(Reporting by Nikita Maria Jino and Kumar Tanishk in Bengaluru; Editing by Alan Barona)
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