Emirates airline profit plunges on fuel costs
Agence France-Presse | 05/22/2009 6:55 PM
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DUBAI - Full-year profit at Emirates, one of the world's fastest growing airlines, plunged 80.4 percent as oil prices skyrocketed to an all-time high of $147 a barrel, the company said on Friday.
Net profit for the fiscal year to March 31 sank to 982 million dirhams ($268 million) from 5 billion dirhams ($1.4 billion) a year earlier, Emirates said in a statement.
Revenues, however, jumped 9.9 percent to 44.2 billion dirhams ($12 billion) from 40.2 billion dirhams ($11 billion) the previous year after it added more destinations and attracted more passengers.
The Dubai-based airline carried 22.7 million passengers, up 7.1 percent year-on-year, as it launched exclusive routes between the Gulf and destinations such as Los Angeles and San Francisco.
Its parent, Emirates Group, posted a 72-percent profit decline, while its revenue rose 10.4 percent year-on-year, the company said.
Rival international airline British Airways on Friday unveiled a loss after tax of 375 million pounds ($590 million) for the 12 months to March after net profit of 712 million pounds in the year to March 2008.
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