Wednesday July 29, 05:39 PM
German airline Lufthansa posts sharp drop in sales
FRANKFURT (AFP) - German flag carrier Lufthansa (Xetra: 823212 - news) on Wednesday reported a nearly 16-percent drop in turnover in the first half, saying the economic downturn was hitting the travel business hard.
The airline said it had posted 10.2 billion euros (14.3 billion dollars) in revenue during the first six months of the year, down 15.7 percent year-on-year and leading to a net loss of 216 million euros.
It said the recession had hurt sales of first-class and business-class tickets in particular.
"The persistent economic crisis and its effects on demand, particularly in the premium segment, placed a considerable burden on the result," it said in a statement.
Lufthansa's operating result reached eight million euros during the same period, down steeply from 677 million euros in the first half of 2008.
The company said it hoped to make a profit for the full year due to ambitious cost cuts announced this month but acknowledged the outlook was cloudy.
"There are considerable risks to the achievement of this goal from future developments in demand and fuel prices," it said.
The company was to unveil complete first-half results early Thursday.
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