Takeover target BAA PLC said Tuesday it was considering investing in airports in China as passenger growth at its British airports slows this year.

BAA, which earlier this month rejected a 8.75 billion pound (US$15.35 billion; euro12.79 billion) takeover proposal from Spanish infrastructure company Grupo Ferrovial SA, said it expects passenger numbers at its seven airports across the country to increase by 2 percent in the year ending March 31.

The group, which operates London's Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted airports, added that retail income from passengers was likely to rise 2 percent, but operating costs would climb 8 percent.

Chief Executive Mike Clasper said that the result was solid "given the impact of a softer U.K. economy and increased security requirements."

Clasper said BAA was looking at investing in secondary airports in China, but added that any investment would not be on the same scale as last year's 1.3 billion pound (US$2.3 billion; euro1.92 billion) acquisition of Budapest Airport.

"What we are looking at are the secondary airports, but given the way the Chinese economy is booming, the secondary airports are millions and millions of passengers," he said.

Clasper declined to comment further on the 810 pence (US$14.20; euro11.83) per share offer from Grupo Ferrovial. BAA said earlier this month said the offer did not reflect the true value of its assets.

The company's shares were trading marginally lower, down just 0.1 percent, at 831 pence (US$14.52; euro12.10) on Tuesday.

Cheuvreux, a European analyst group, said it expects Ferrovial to launch a bid for BAA in the 850 pence to 900 pence (US$14.85 to US$15.73; euro12.38 to euro13.11) range soon, adding that BAA "is a well-run asset, but we think that Ferrovial can run it even better."

BAA said that it handled 145.1 million passengers at its airports _ including Budapest _ in the 11 months to the end of February, a 3.1 percent increase on the year before.

It said that the new Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport, now three quarters complete, is on budget and on schedule to open on March 30, 2008. It added that it had agreed to the forward sale of a ground lease to Arora International Hotels at the terminal worth 40 million pounds (US$69.8 million; euro58.1 million).