SAO PAULO (Reuters) - South American e-commerce giant MercadoLibre Inc on Thursday reported a third-quarter net income up 36% from a year earlier, as it nearly doubled its fintech revenues, helping offset a relative slowdown in online shopping.

The Argentina-based company, which operates in countries across Latin America, posted a quarterly net income of $129 million.

More credit users and payments through QR codes and mobile terminals across Brazil, Argentina and Mexico helped add users and grow revenues at its fintech unit Mercado Pago by 94% to $1.2 billion.

"Mercado Pago is growing exponentially, attesting to the potential for development and expansion of financial services in the region," finance chief Pedro Arnt said in a statement.

The company's loan portfolio meanwhile reached $2.8 billion in the quarter, up 4% from the previous quarter, as it expanded its credit business.

Over the quarter MercadoLibre said it added 4 million new users, bringing its active use base up 12% to 88 million.

This helped net revenues leap 61% in constant currency (45% in dollars) to reach $2.7 billion - in line with Refinitiv estimates. Earnings per share meanwhile rose 34%, ahead of analysts' $2.23 forecast, to hit $2.57.

Gross merchandise volume (GMV), a key metric in the e-commerce industry, was up 32% in constant currency (18% in dollars) to hit $8.6 billion.

This level of growth marks a continued slowdown from the explosive levels it had reached during pandemic lockdowns, as more shoppers returned to physical stores.

Soaring inflation and interest rates have also squeezed customers' wallets, weighed on the region's e-commerce, senior strategy VP Andre Chaves told Reuters following the results.

Despite this, Chavez said MercadoLibre's business in Brazil, where the company said it is gaining market share, is looking to expand into supermarket goods, a segment that has seen massive growth since the pandemic.

(Reporting by Aluisio Alves, Writing by Carolina Pulice)