NEW YORK - Ctrip.com International Ltd, a Chinese travel service provider, said first-quarter profit increased 23 percent on higher revenues from hotel and flight reservations and tour bookings.

On Monday, the Shanghai-based company reported net income of 234.9 million yuan ($35.8 million), or 1.54 yuan per American depositary share, for the three months ended March 31.

That compares with net income of 190.4 million yuan, or 1.30 yuan per American depositary share, in the same quarter last year.

Excluding the impact of share-based compensation charges, the company earned 2.01 yuan per American depositary share for the quarter.

The results trumped the consensus forecast of analysts which was for earnings of 22 cents per American depositary share, according to FactSet.

Revenue surged to 764.5 million yuan, from 586.7 million yuan a year earlier. Analysts were anticipating revenue of $111.8 million.

Travel in China is on the rise, and the market is projected to double next year, by some estimates.

That represents a potential windfall for travel websites that are in position to grab a slice of the business.

On Tuesday, the Chinese Internet and mobile company Tencent Holdings Ltd bought a 16 percent interest in Beijing-based online travel company eLong Inc.

Online travel company Expedia Inc, meanwhile, boosted its stake in eLong to 56 percent.

Ctrip.com said revenue from hotel reservations increased 23 percent from the same quarter a year earlier, driven by a 20 percent jump in volume and rising commission for each room night. Flight bookings for the quarter also improved 23 percent from a year earlier, primarily driven by a 20 percent rise in sales volume for air tickets and a 3 percent uptick in the commission for each ticket, the company said.

Packaged tour revenue surged 74 percent from a year earlier, as leisure travel volumes increased.The company noted that its Wing On Travel and ezTravel units contributed 54 percent to its annual increase in package tour revenue as travel demand picked up.

Corporate travel revenue for the quarter rose 20 percent from the same quarter in the previous year. Looking ahead, Ctrip.com expects revenue in the second quarter to grow between 15 percent and 20 percent.

The Associated Press

(China Daily 05/19/2011 page16)