(Reuters) - New Zealand's biggest airport operator Auckland International Airport Ltd <AIA.NZ> said first-half underlying profit rose 8 percent as more passengers flew to the Pacific nation.
Underlying profit was NZ$133.1 million ($98.57 million) for the six months ended Dec. 31, the company said on Friday, compared to NZ$123.5 million in the prior corresponding period.
AIA declared an interim dividend of 10.75 New Zealand cents per share, up from 10 New Zealand cents a share in the previous first half. AIA has reaped the benefit of a tourism boom in geographically rugged, culturally ambitious New Zealand, sending international visitor numbers up 6 percent (excluding transit passengers) in the six-month period.
The company said revenue for the six-month period rose 7 percent to NZ$332.4 million.
It also said underlying profit after tax for the full year
would be between NZ$250 million and NZ$257 million.
(Reporting by Aaron Saldanha in Bengaluru; Editing by Byron Kaye and David Evans)
