Torstar profit rises 23 percent

TORONTO, July 30 (Reuters) - Book and newspaper publisher Torstar Corp (TSb.TO) reported a higher quarterly profit on Thursday helped by strong performances from its Harlequin and Metroland divisions and a gain on the sale of some real estate.

Torstar, which publishes the Toronto Star daily newspaper and the Harlequin line of romantic novels, earned C$37 million, or 47 Canadian cents a share a share, up 23 percent from C$30.1 million, or 38 Canadian cents a share for the same period last year. ($1=$1.02 Canadian) (Reporting by Scott Anderson; Editing by Derek Caney)