British Airways reports Q1 net profit of GBP90m

Airline Industry Information, August 5, 2005

AIRLINE INDUSTRY INFORMATION-(C)1997-2005 M2 COMMUNICATIONS LTD

British Airways has reported that its net profit for the first quarter of the current financial year more than doubled compared to the same period of 2004.

Net profit for the three months ending 30 June increased to GBP90m from GBP43m in the same period last year. First quarter revenue was up 8.3% to GBP2.06bn.

The airline's yields, or average fares, for the quarter increased for the first time since 2001 as a result of fuel surcharges and more first- and business-class tickets being sold.

The company has raised the forecast for its annual fuel bill by GBP75m from the June forecast. Fuel costs for the year are now expected to be around GBP525m more than last year.

During July British Airways' passenger traffic rose 4.2% and premium traffic was 6.8% higher. Passenger capacity increased 2.4% and the passenger load factor went up by 1.4 percentage points.

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