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IATA: Airlines tilt to losses in 1st quarter

05 July 2012 08:45 (UTC +04:00)

Baku - APA-Economics. Airlines racked up a hefty loss in the first quarter this year as industry gloom deepened, the International Air Transport Association, or IATA, said Wednesday, APA reports.

Some 55 airlines across the world posted a combined net loss of over $1 billion in the first quarter, compared with a post-tax profit of $17 million in the same period last year, aviation’s top industry body said.

It blamed high oil prices that dropped around $30 a barrel in the three months to the end of June, slightly easing the burden on the struggling industry.

European and Asian airlines suffered the most, while U.S. carriers performed strongly breaking back into a profit of $518 million from a small loss the year before helped by higher yields and load factors.

Earlier in the week, IATA said demand for global air travel slowed in May as concerns about the economy weighed.

Europe’s debt crisis and unrest in the Middle East and North Africa has hurt European and Asian carriers at a time of global economic uncertainty and high fuel costs.

Airline share prices improved slightly in June compared with May but underperformed other industries.