BEIJING, March 31 (Xinhua) -- Tsingtao Brewery Co. Ltd., one of China's leading beer makers, Thursday announced its 2010 net profit hit 1.52 billion yuan (231.8 million U.S. dollars), up 21.6 percent year on year.

The company's sales revenue rose 10.4 percent year on year to 19.6 billion yuan due to steady market expansion, the Shanghai-listed firm said in its 2010 annual business report.

Earnings per share rose 18.4 percent from a year earlier to 1.13 yuan, according to the report.

The brewery, based in Qingdao in eastern Shandong Province, attributed the net profit growth mainly to rising sales of high-end products, said the report.