Air China, China Southern stay in the red amid travel controls

Two of China’s biggest airlines posted steep third-quarter losses on Friday as the country’s stringent zero-COVID policy reduced domestic demand and kept international flights at a tiny fraction of pre-pandemic levels. Air China and China Southern Airlines reported a combined 14.8b yuan ($2.04b) Q3 loss, taking their total losses this year to 45.7b yuan. The Q4 outlook remains dim after a lacklustre week-long National Day holiday in October that saw the number of trips fall 18.2% from last year, according to government data. The government advised citizens to stay put during the holiday, a popular domestic and international travel period before the pandemic, to curb the spread of COVID-19, even though case numbers in China are small by global standards. Air China, the country’s flagship carrier, reported a Q3 loss of 8.7b yuan, narrower than a loss of 10.5b yuan in Q2 when the country experienced major travel disruptions, including a lockdown in Shanghai. China Southern Airlines posted a Q3 loss of 6.1b yuan, better than a 7.0b yuan loss in the previous quarter. Rival Shanghai-based China Eastern Airlines is scheduled to report earnings on Sunday. The three state-owned airlines are resuming some international routes this month after the government in May requested an increase to facilitate travel by staff members at international companies. The Civil Aviation Administration of China said on Wednesday that international flights would double for the October-March winter schedule season relative to the prior year to 840 one-way flights per week.<br/>