(Yicai Global) Sept. 10 -- Revenue from overseas made up some 35 percent of Chinese travel giant Ctrip.Com International's second-quarter income as it sought to expand overseas.

The Shanghai-based firm pulled in CNY8.7 billion (USD1.3 billion) in the three months ended June, according to an unaudited report published yesterday. The figure was up 19 percent annually as profit surged 84 percent to CNY1.3 billion.

Shares in the company [NASDAQ:CTRP] went largely unmoved, closing up 0.52 percent at USD35.11.

"We are confident and excited about the long-term future for the travel industry in China and the world," said Chief Executive Jane Sun, adding that the international expansion reduces the impact of season travel factors and spreads the risks relating to geographic uncertainty.

Ctrip acquired a 42.5 percent stake in India's largest online travel agency MakeMyTrip from Tencent shareholder Naspers last month, becoming the target's largest shareholder. It also struck a deal with the East Japan Railway in April this year to expand coverage of its train ticket services to more than 50 countries and regions.

The firm also operates taxi services in 785 cities across 47 countries in Europe, the Americas and Southeast Asia.

While beefing up its international presence, Ctrip has also been more active in China's lower-tier cities. In the second quarter, the number of rooms booked at partners' low-star-rated hotels grew by more than 50 percent for the fifth three-month period, with its offline stores collecting as much as CNY120 million (USD16.9 million) in gross merchandise volume in a single day.

Editor: James Boynton