Google’s China problems haven’t shown up on the company’s bottom line, with the search firm boosting quarterly revenue 17% and profit fivefold.
It announced on Thursday one-third higher operating income of $2.48 billion (€1.76) on revenue of $6.67 billion. Net income was $1.97 billion, compared with $382 million a year ago.
While the profit beat expectations, sales were in line with forecasts.
Google’s stock fell 0.07% to $582.58 in after-hours trading.
Revenue from outside the US totaled $3.52 billion, representing 53% of sales, up from 50% in the fourth quarter of 2008. UK sales totaled $772 million, accounting for 12% of the total.
CEO Eric Schmidt said: “Given that the global economy is still in the early days of recovery, this was an extraordinary end to the year.
“As we enter 2010, we remain hugely optimistic about the internet and are continuing to invest heavily in technological innovation for the benefit not only of our users and customers, but also the wider web.”
In other Google news, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister He Yafei said the issue should not be linked to China’s relationship with the United States.
In a speech on cyber-censorship, US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton called for an international effort to combat censorship and prevent cyber-attacks.