Crown Ltd, Australia's biggest casino owner, released its first half results and outlook for the rest of the year today. The casino operator returned to profit in the first half of the financial year.

The first half profit was reported mainly because of the improved business at its Melbourne venue. The company also said that it is cautiously optimistic about the second half of the year.

Crown posted a net income of A$115.3 million or 15.2 cents a share, in the first six months of the fiscal ended December, while in the same period last year the company posted a loss of A$409.7 million, or 59.3 cents per share. The results in the first half of last year was badly affected by the write down on stakes of A$547.5 million in casinos in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. Revenue for the first half was reported A$1.2 billion, decreasing by 0.3%.

However, the company said that overall results for Crown's casinos in Melbourne and Perth were satisfactory. The company also said in its result that the consumer confidence rebounded in the early months of the 2010 calendar year in its Australian casinos. The company is expecting a better result for the rest of the year.

"I think we saw a pick up in the New Year," said Rowen Craigie, chief executive of Crown.