2010-08-30 15:09

BEIJING - Hainan Airlines Co Ltd, one of China's major air carriers, said its first-half-year net profit jumped 218.19 percent on strong market demand and domestic economic growth.

Net profit totaled 556.8 million yuan ($81.9 million) in the first six months this year, the company said in a statement filed with the Shanghai Stock Exchange on Sunday.

Earnings per share stood at 0.141 yuan, compared with 0.051 yuan one year earlier. Also, business revenues climbed 42.84 percent to 8.742 billion yuan in the first half, it said.

The company, based in the southernmost island of Hainan, said the surge in profits was a result of an unexpected increase in demand in China's civil aviation industry, which had rebounded since the beginning of this year along with the country's economy.

Hainan Airlines expects to benefit from the central government's plan to build the island of Hainan into an international tourist resort by 2020, which was officially approved in June, said the statement.