Carnival Earnings Jump Almost 50%

Carnival Corp., the world’s largest cruise company, said its fiscal third-quarter earnings jumped almost 50%, mainly because of its merger with P&O; Princess Cruises but also because of a rebound in passenger booking after the end of the war in Iraq.

Miami-based Carnival said it earned $734.3 million, or 90 cents a share, for the three months ended Aug. 31, up from $500.8 million, or 85 cents, a year earlier.

Revenue for the quarter was $2.52 billion, compared with $1.44 billion a year earlier. About $1.1 billion of the increase was primarily due to the inclusion of Carnival PLC revenue.

Carnival beat the consensus earnings forecast of 88 cents a share of analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call.

Carnival shares rose 34 cents to $35.33 on the NYSE.