S.Africa Airways Profit Tumbles 90 pct to R65 mln

By Reuters Posted 06 July 2006 @ 05:10 pm EET     Print     Reprint     E-Mail     Comments

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - State-owned South African Airways posted a 90 percent slump in profit on Thursday as fuel costs skyrocketed.

The airline profit for the 12 months to end March fell to 65 million rand from a restated 648 million rand, according to a booklet released ahead of a results presentation. The booklet did not specify what kind of profit was being reported.

Previous figures had been restated to align them with IFRS accounting standards.

SAA said it faced rocketing fuel prices during the year, with the fuel bill increasing by 1.7 billion rand to 4.9 billion, taking energy spending to more than a quarter of overall operating costs.

The airline said it lost market share to low-cost carriers, but its passenger numbers grew by 4.5 percent to 7.2 million.

SAA Chief Executive Khaya Ngqula said SAA had been through a period of consolidation and that the airline was entering a growth phase.