BEIJING - The Beijing Olympic Games turned a profit of 176 million dollars, although the figure failed to include more than 2.8 billion dollars in venue construction costs, China's state auditor said Friday.

The audit, which covered the period from September 2008 to March of this year, "did not uncover any large losses, wasteful spending or illegal issues," the General Audit Office said in its report.

Revenue from the August Games is expected to total 20.5 billion yuan (S$4.36 billion), while expenditure will come in at 19.3 billion yuan, the office said, adding the Games accounting has not been finalised.

But the total bill for venue construction was expected to be 19.5 billion yuan (S$4.15 billion dollars), with most of the funds coming from local government funding, it said.

The venues included 36 stadiums used in the Games, and 66 training facilities, it said.

"The Beijing Games was not the most expensive Games ever," an audit official said in remarks posted on the office's website.

"Based on fixed exchange rates, the scope of expenditure of the Beijing Games was less than the previous Games. At the same time as far as we are aware, the next Olympic Games budget will be bigger than the Beijing budget."

Up to 40 percent of the Games operating revenue was provided by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the audit showed, while other income came from local sponsorship, lodging, ticketing and other revenue streams.

The operating profit would be divided between the IOC, the China Olympic Committee and the Beijing Games organising committee, it said.

Meanwhile, the Beijing Paralympic Games broke even with costs totalling 863 million yuan, it said.

The audit was commissioned by the State Council, China's cabinet, based on its pre-Games pledge to hold an "honest and frugal Olympics."

Since the end of the Games, nearly four million tourists have visited the iconic Bird's Nest National Stadium, the symbol of the Beijing Olympics, bringing in up to 210 million yuan in revenue, the report said.

--AFP