DALLAS — Continental Airlines lost $146 million in the first quarter — a wider loss than analysts expected — as higher fuel costs offset an increase in revenue.

The Houston-based airline said today that revenue rose 7 percent, another sign that travel is slowly recovering from a deep slump.

The average price of a gallon of jet fuel jumped 17 percent, and Continental joined Delta Air Lines Inc. and American Airlines parent AMR Corp. in reporting big first-quarter losses.

The good news for Continental: Analysts believe it will make money the rest of this year as travel demand builds, especially on lucrative international routes.

Continental Airlines Inc. said it lost $1.05 per share in the first quarter. Without severance costs and other one-time write-downs, the loss would have been 98 cents per share.

Analysts, who usually don't include one-time items in their forecasts, expected a loss of 86 cents per share, according to a survey by Thomson Reuters.

Revenue rose to $3.17 billion, slightly higher than the expected $3.15 billion.

A year ago, Continental lost $136 million in the first quarter as traffic tumbled to $3 billion during the recession.

Continental has been able to make more money per seat, thanks to higher fares and fees on checked bags and other services.