British Airways’ parent company International Airlines Group (IAG) has revealed a 35% slump in profits because of soaring fuel costs.
The group reported pre-tax profits tumbling to 732 million euro (£627 million) in the three months to the end of June, from 1.1 billion euro (£940 million) a year earlier.
The company’s fuel costs and emissions charges rose by 23%, linked to the conflict in the Middle East.
Its revenue was stable at 8,883 million euro (£7,603 million).
IAG chief executive Luis Gallego insisted the group has “excellent fundamentals”, and its diverse portfolio of brands means it is well positioned to deal with “near-term headwinds”.
The company, which also owns the Iberia, Vueling and Level airlines, said it expects demand for travel across its network to “remain strong”.
About 57% of its seats have been booked for the second half of the year, with revenue from those bookings in line with last year.
It added that it expects its long-haul markets to “remain positive” and short-haul flights to be “competitive”.
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