By Rong Xiandong (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2007-07-18 17:12

The civil aviation industry earned 4.62 billion yuan (US$610.79 million) in profits in the first half of this year, statistics from the General Administration of Civil Aviation of China show.

Airports accounted for nearly half, or 2.11 billion yuan, of the industry's total profit during the period, with airlines making up 1.54 billion yuan, and other enterprises contributing 970 million yuan, according to the figures from the administration.

In the first six months of the year, the civil aviation industry's core business revenue climbed 18.3 percent to 121.83 billion yuan, while investment in fixed assets reached 10.4 billion yuan, an increase of three percent year on year.

The revenue was a result of transportation turnover of 16.67 billion tons/kilometer, a passenger throughput of 86.70 million, and a cargo throughput of 1.83 million tons. Those numbers increased by 19.5, 16.7 and 15.2 percent respectively compared with the same period last year.

The civil aviation authorities say they will buck the trend of overheating in aviation transportation by loosening direct control over the industry and taking more macro control measures like control of market access, allocation of air transportation capacities, infrastructure construction, and expansion of international routes.