China's Baidu sees revenue, profits double during Q1

Baidu.com Inc., China's top search engine, is on a roll. The company announced its first-quarter revenue and profit more than doubled thanks to skyrocketing demand for online ads.

Baidu reported first-quarter revenue of 275.6 million renminbi (US$35.6 million as of March 31, the last day of the period being reported), an increase of 103 percent over the same period last year. Net income rose 143 percent, to 85.5 million renminbi. The company credit the increases to rising demand for online ads from Chinese companies.

Looking ahead, Baidu expects this growth to continue, with second-quarter revenue to show gains of up to 41 percent on a sequential basis. Baidu's results and outlook, released after U.S. markets closed Thursday, sent the company's U.S.-listed shares higher, rising 23 percent in after-hours trading.

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Baidu.com Inc., China's top search engine, is on a roll. The company announced its first-quarter revenue and profit more than doubled thanks to skyrocketing demand for online ads.

Baidu reported first-quarter revenue of 275.6 million renminbi (US$35.6 million as of March 31, the last day of the period being reported), an increase of 103 percent over the same period last year. Net income rose 143 percent, to 85.5 million renminbi. The company credit the increases to rising demand for online ads from Chinese companies.

Looking ahead, Baidu expects this growth to continue, with second-quarter revenue to show gains of up to 41 percent on a sequential basis. Baidu's results and outlook, released after U.S. markets closed Thursday, sent the company's U.S.-listed shares higher, rising 23 percent in after-hours trading.

Baidu's results come despite earlier concerns of softness in ad sales due to the annual Chinese New Year holiday, when businesses across China shut down.

The IDG News Service is a Network World affiliate.