AirAsia quarterly profit jumps 41% on high demand, low oil

AirAsia reported a 41% surge in Q2 profit Monday as it benefited from stronger demand and lower fuel costs. The airline also said it was seeing strong demand for Q3, and expects a load factor in home country Malaysia of 90% in Q3, from 87% in Q2. "In Malaysia, demand remains extremely robust and we foresee this to improve in the coming quarters as consumer sentiment is picking up in the domestic economy," AirAsia Group CE Tony Fernandes said. Fernandes is now focussed on accelerating the company's growth in large markets such as India. The airline also forecast 80%-plus load factors for Thailand, Indonesia, India and the Philippines. Net profit for the 3 months through June jumped to MYR341.9m (US$84.71m) from MYR243.0m a year earlier. <br/>