Korean Air swings to loss in Q2 on weaker won

By Nam Kwang-sik
SEOUL, Nov. 14 (Yonhap) -- Korean Air Lines Co., South Korea's largest carrier,
said Friday that it swung to a net loss in the third quarter as a weaker won
increased fuel and debt service costs.

Net loss stood at 684.1 billion won (US$495.7 million) in the July-September
period, compared with a profit of 129.6 billion won a year ago, Korean Air said
in a statement.
Sales rose 16.4 percent on-year to 2.76 trillion won, but the company recorded an
operating loss of 25.1 billion won, compared with a profit of 281.4 billion won.
Despite its net loss, Korean Air shares rose 3.34 percent to 34,000 won as of
9:24 a.m. on the main bourse.
Korean Air's fuel costs rose 83 percent on-year to 1.26 trillion won in the three
months to September due to higher jet fuel prices and the won's depreciation
against the U.S. dollar, it said.
The company also posted about 760 billion won in foreign exchange losses, it added.
Korean Air predicted that its fourth-quarter performance will get better on the
back of a recent fall in oil prices.
ksnam@yna.co.kr
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