TOKYO, Aug 4 (NNN-NHK) – Japan Airlines Co. said, it posted a net loss of 93.71 billion yen (881.63 million U.S. dollars) in the Apr-June quarter, as the global pandemic wreaked havoc on the global aviation industry.
Owing to uncertainty amid the continued pandemic, JAL said, it had once again opted to withhold its earnings outlook for the current business year through Mar, although said it projects profits from domestic and international passengers to slump as much as 65 percent, compared to last year’s revenue of 1.06 trillion yen (9.97 billion U.S. dollars).
JAL said, it logged an operating loss of 131.01 billion yen (1.23 billion U.S. dollars) in the Apr-June quarter, on revenue of 76.39 billion yen (718.81 million U.S. dollars), which was a drop of more than 78 percent compared to a year earlier.
From international passengers, revenue nosedived 97.9 percent to 2.7 billion yen (25.40 million U.S. dollars), while that from domestic travellers tumbled 85.1 percent to 18.9 billion yen (177.86 million U.S. dollars), in the reporting period, JAL said.
“It is very hard to foresee a path to recovery right now,” Hideki Kikuyama, a senior managing executive officer of JAL, told a press conference, adding, however that, he was certain that JAL will “survive this crisis.”
While stating that its cash reserves remained stable as of the end of June, Kikuma said, wholesale restructuring operations would be conducted in a bid to cut fixed costs by 90 billion yen (847.14 million U.S. dollars).
As for JAL’s plans to invest 80 billion yen (753.01 million U.S. dollars) in new planes, among other previously planned expenditures, Kikuma said, such spending for fiscal 2020 would be postponed, with the focus remaining on surviving the global pandemic.– NNN-NHK