United sees Q2 unit revenue up, but cites Pacific 'weakness'

United Tuesday said it expected Q2 passenger unit revenue to land in the middle of its forecast, but added that the trans-Pacific market continued to face "incremental weakness." The carrier said Q2 passenger unit revenue, an important metric for the airline business, was expected to rise roughly 2%. Earlier, the carrier said it expected a unit revenue increase of 1%-3%. That outlook follows Delta's announcement last week that its unit revenue had risen around 2.5%, at the higher end of its forecast range. Southwest on Monday stuck with its original guidance for a unit revenue increase of 1%-2%. Unit revenue, which measures an airline's revenue in relation to its flight capacity, has improved as travel demand picks up and after higher fuel prices encouraged moderation in airlines' plans to add flights. For the month of June, United said that passenger traffic rose 3.4%, while capacity rose 5%. United's monthly operational figures come ahead of Delta's Q2 earnings, set for release Thursday. United reports next Tuesday. United's performance in the increasingly crowded Pacific market has been hurt by "unfavorable supply-and-demand dynamics in China and Hong Kong."<br/>