India's SpiceJet sees improving outlook despite profit plunge

Higher passenger yields for Indian low-cost carrier SpiceJet in its Q3 only partially offset higher crude oil prices and foreign-exchange losses that resulted in a sharp drop in profit. Though profit plunged by 77% after a 34% jump in oil prices and 11% depreciation of the rupee against the dollar sent, shares in the company closed 2.4% up on the 8% increase in passenger yields and hopes of more stable crude prices. The airline's standalone net profit, which excludes results of its SpiceJet Merchandise and SpiceJet Technic businesses, fell to 550.7m rupees (US$7.74m) for the last three months of 2018 from 2.4b rupees a year earlier, the airline said here. SpiceJet, India’s fourth-largest airline by market share, and rival IndiGo are seeing signs of recovery in an intensely competitive market in which profitability has been squeezed further by an intense price war. With oil prices easing and SpiceJet adding the fuel-efficient Boeing 737 MAX aircraft to its fleet, “the outlook looks stronger than it has over the past year”, Chairman and Managing Director Ajay Singh said.<br/>