NHN Q2 net up 11.1 pct on higher search revenue

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SEOUL, Aug. 6 (Yonhap) -- NHN Corp., the operator of South Korea's largest
Internet portal, Naver, said Thursday its second-quarter earnings gained 11.1
percent from a year ago on a rise in search revenue and on-line ads.
Net income came to 103.3 billion won (US$84.3 million) in the April-June period,
compared with 92.9 billion won a year earlier, NHN said in a regulatory filing.
Sales, however, shed 0.7 percent to 302.6 billion won in the period, while
operating profit gained 0.9 percent to 129.9 billion won, the company said.
The results were announced an hour before the stock market opened.
The company said its revenue from search advertising alone climbed 4.5 percent
on-year to 166 billion won, and sales in display advertisements also rose 21.9
percent to 50.7 billion won.
"Expectations of an economic recovery led to a rebound in advertisements," said
Kim Sang-hun, chief executive of NHN.
Revenue from online game services gained 18.9 percent from a year earlier to 111
billion won, the company said.
ygkim@yna.co.kr
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