HOUSTON (Reuters) – Oilfield services company Halliburton Co on Monday said its fourth-quarter net profit rose 5 percent, helped by growth in the its Eastern Hemisphere business and a lower tax rate.

Net income in the quarter was $690 million, or 75 cents per diluted share, compared with $658 million, or 64 cents per diluted share a year earlier.

Income from continuing operations in the 2007 fourth quarter was $674 million, or 74 cents per diluted share, compared with $627 million, or 61 cents per diluted share a year ago.

Results in the 2007 fourth quarter included an after-tax charge of $22 million related to the impairment of an oil and gas property in Bangladesh and $8 million in executive severance expenses, the company, which has headquarters in Houston and Dubai, said.

Revenue in the quarter was $4.2 billion, up 19 percent.

Operating income for the company’s completion and production unit in the quarter fell 4 percent from a year ago to $571 million, hit by higher costs and pricing weakness for some of its services in the United States.

In Halliburton’s drilling and evaluation unit, operating income rose 5 percent to $403 million.