JAL sees second-quarter earnings improvement as rising costs loom

Japan Airlines reported an increase in its second-quarter earnings, amid an uplift in revenue across its business units and despite a rise in operating costs. 

For the quarter ended 30 September, the airline group disclosed a positive EBIT of Y63.5 billion ($416.6 million), up about 6% year on year. 

However, the increase was not enough to offset an overall dip in EBIT: JAL reported a 6.1% drop in EBIT for the six months to 30 September, at Y91.2 billion. 

Group revenue rose 8.7% during the quarter to Y478 billion, with its international passenger and low-cost carrier business showing the highest revenue increases. 

JAL notes that international yields have yet to fully normalise, which has helped boost its quarterly revenues by 4.6%. During the July-September quarter, the network operator carried 1.87 million passengers, up 8.6% year on year. 

On the domestic front, JAL reported a smaller increase in passenger revenue during the quarter, at 1.7%, against a 3.7% rise in passenger volumes to 9.3 million. 

JAL’s two low-cost units – Zipair and Spring Japan – each reported 33% increases in quarterly revenue, as they each “successfully captured” strong inbound traffic from North America and Asia, as well as Mainland China, respectively. 

For the half-year, JAL saw group revenue increase nearly 10% to Y902 billion. 

The Oneworld operator also saw its expenses rise during the quarter, up 9% year on year to Y418 billion. For the half-year, costs stood at Y824 billion, up almost 12%. 

The rise was due to higher fuel costs caused by the weaker Japanese yen, as well as “increased costs linked to revenue increase”, says JAL. 

Like its compatriot ANA, JAL is maintaining its full-year profit outlook, of an EBIT of Y170 billion.