Lufthansa sees return to profit this quarter as air travel rebounds

Lufthansa is looking to return to an operating profit this quarter as demand for travel rises with the easing of COVID-19 curbs and the airline raises ticket prices to offset higher costs. The group, which owns the German airlines Lufthansa and Eurowings as well as Swiss, Austrian and Brussels Airlines, doubled sales in Q1 as more people started travelling again after two years of lockdowns and travel restrictions, although an overall first-quarter operating loss was bigger than analysts had expected. “As the pandemic subsides, families, friends and business partners around the world are travelling to meet each other again. And I think the world is also coming to realize how important friendly personal contacts are,” CE Carsten Spohr told a news conference. The airline reported that Q1 revenue doubled from a year earlier to E5.36b, exceeding analysts’ average forecast for sales of E5.12b, though it was not able to reduce losses as much as expected due to skyrocketing fuel prices amid Russia’s war in Ukraine. Lufthansa’s adjusted loss before interest and taxes (EBIT) narrowed to E591m in Q1, from a loss of E1.05b for the same period of 2021. Analysts had on average expected the loss to narrow to E558m according to a company-provided consensus. However, the airline hopes to be able to pass some of the rising costs to customers with flight ticket price hikes. “I don’t see any problem with price increases affecting demand. Over the last six months, we have already pushed through a couple of price hikes. I think it’s four already along the way,” finance chief Remco Steenbergen told the conference.<br/>