WASHINGTON — Marriott International Inc. said its first-quarter profit dropped 34 percent as the slowing U.S. economy took a toll on its hotels. The results were in line with Wall Street expectations, but the hotel operator lowered its forecast for the full year.

The Bethesda, Md.-based company said Thursday it earned $121 million, or 33 cents per share, for the 12 weeks ended March 21. That was down from the $182 million, or 44 cents per share, a year earlier.

Marriott's revenue rose to $2.95 billion from $2.84 billion a year ago.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial expected Marriott to earn 33 cents per share on revenue of $2.83 billion.

Revenue per available room, an industry benchmark known as revpar, rose 4.4 percent for the quarter at all Marriott hotels.

In North America, where most of the company's hotels are located, revpar grew by just 2.3 percent, down sharply from the nearly double-digit figure the company posted a year ago. Marriott said the lower numbers were due in part to factors such as an earlier Easter holiday and softness in leisure travel bookings. Marriott operates 10 hotels on four islands in Hawai'i.

However, worldwide demand for rooms remained strong, as Marriott saw revpar grow 18.5 percent at overseas hotels, allowing it to raise daily room rates by an average of 16 percent. Growth was strong in markets like China and oil-producing regions such as Russia.

The threat of recession has dogged Marriott and other lodging companies in recent quarters. Strapped consumers and businesses often cut back on travel during economic downturns.

Marriott has gradually lowered its forecasts for 2008 as the U.S. economy continues to weaken. In February, the company trimmed its revpar projections and said there were some early signs of a travel pullback.

"To be sure, we are going to be heavily dependent on the performance of the economy over the next number of quarters," said Arne Sorenson, Marriott's chief financial officer.

The company lowered its outlook slightly for 2008 Thursday by 2 cents, saying it expects between $1.98 and $2.08 per share in earnings. Analysts forecast $2.03 per share in 2008. Marriott expects revpar to grow by between 3 percent to 5 percent, in line with the February forecast.

The company has still undertaken some new ventures in the past year, including developing a line of boutique hotels and a string of theme parks with children's television network Nickelodeon.

Marriott operates under brand names that include Courtyard, Ritz-Carlton and Marriott.