Lufthansa enters the red with €336m loss as rising fuel costs take a bite out of the airline industry
German carrier Lufthansa showed and operating loss reaching €336m (£290m) in the first three months of the year as fuel costs ate into its profits.
Revenues at the airline grew three per cent year-on-year to €7.9bn, but its €52m operating profit reversed into a big loss.
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The firm said it had taken a €202m hit from rising fuel costs, while what it called market-wide overcapacities also pushed down prices.
Meanwhile, the negative effect was compounded by the equivalent quarter in 2018 being particularly strong.
“We are seeing good booking levels for the quarter ahead,” said Lufthansa finance chief Ulrik Svensson.
“At the same time, we have substantially reduced our own capacity growth. And with a reduction in growth also projected for the European market as a whole, we expect unit revenues to increase again in the second quarter.
“This should be further buoyed by the still-strong demand on our long-haul routes, especially to Asia and North America.”
Shares in the carrier opened down around two per cent this morning, but have quickly recovered ground. They are currently trading down 0.3 per cent to €21.93.
Lufthansa becomes the latest European airline to hit turbulence.
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Earlier this month low-cost rival Easyjet said it expects to report a £275m loss over six months ending March.
Norwegian Air Shuttle faces issues over its share price which has dropped around 75 per cent since September, while a string of carriers, including Icelandic Wow Air, have gone out of business.