The cinema branch of Chinese conglomerate the Wanda Group has reported stellar performance in 2014, boosted by the rapid development of the movie sector in China.
Wanda Cinema Line Co. raked in 5.3 billion yuan (868 million U.S. dollars) in operating revenue last year, up 32.7 percent from the previous year, it said on Friday, in its first financial report since going public in January.
Net profits also increased by 32.7 percent to 803 million yuan, said the country's largest cinema chain, which has a 14.2-percent market share.
Last year, Wanda's 182 cinemas, comprising 1,616 screens, welcomed 102 million moviegoers, earning 4.2 billion yuan in box office sales.
With 48 cinema chains, China has grown into the world's second-largest movie market after North America, as people become more willing to spend on entertainment.
"Chinese people are developing a habit of watching movies in cinemas, propelling the fast development of theater chains," noted Wanda's report.
In 2014, Chinese cinemas added 5,397 new screens, bringing the total number to 23,600 across the country at the end of the year. Total box office sales rose 36.15 percent to 29.6 billion yuan, while global growth was around 1 percent.
Most of China's cinema companies operate a very small number of theaters, while North America's top three chains -- Regal, AMC and Cinemark -- control about 60 percent of box office sales in the region.
Each urban resident in China watched an average of 1.1 films at the cinema last year, compared with over three in developed countries, indicating ample growth room.
However, Wanda said competition will mount in the fight to win a larger consumer base. Its major rivals have yet to release reports on their financial performance.
Wanda also cautioned that a lack of blockbusters could hamper cinema business as domestic movie production remains embryonic.
Nearly half of China's box office sales last year came from foreign movies, and industry regulators limit the number of imports to 64 movies every year.
