** Commonwealth Bank of Australia CBA.AX rises 1.7% to a record high of A$164.84
** Stock among top gainers on ASX 200 index .AXJO
** Australia's largest bank reports H1 cash profit of A$5.13 bln ($3.23 bln) vs year-ago A$5.02 bln, beating Visible Alpha consensus estimate of A$5.06 bln
** Post-loan impairment expense falls 23% y/y
** Declares highest ever H1 interim dividend of A$2.25/shr
** Says its home-lending portfolio "well-secured"; CBA controls quarter of Australia's A$2.2 trln mortgage market
** Citi says asset quality trends look resilient through H1
** CBA gained 4.8% last month
($1 = A$1.5878)
(Reporting by Kumar Tanishk in Bengaluru)
((Tanishk.Kumar@thomsonreuters.com;))