SM Prime Holdings Inc., the largest Philippine shopping mall operator, said third-quarter profit rose after acquiring malls in China and increasing the space it leases to tenants such as McDonald’s Corp. and Starbucks Corp.

Net income rose 8.5 percent to 1.53 billion pesos (US$ 31 million) in the three months ended September from a year ago, Manila-based SM Prime said.

Sales rose 15 percent to 4.47 billion pesos, it said. SM Prime opened its 31st Philippine shopping mall in September with at least 90 percent of the retail space leased.

The company, which opened three malls and expanded three others in 2007, is scheduled to open two more facilities this year.

The company has added 5.11 million square feet of mall space, driving a 19 percent growth in rental income, its biggest revenue source, to 3.88 billion pesos, SM Prime said.

SM Prime was founded by Henry Sy, the nation’s richest man with an estimated wealth of US$ 3.1 billion, according to a ranking by Forbes Asia last month.

Last year, it acquired Sy’s three shopping malls in China for US$ 252 million, gaining foothold in a market that’s 23 times the US$ 144 billion Philippine economy.