The German aviation giant Lufthansa closed the third quarter of the year with less profit. Among other things, the company saw the effects of cost savings being offset by lower ticket prices. The latter is the result of the fierce competition on the European aviation market. The company also has more to spend on fuel.
The adjusted gross profit of Lufthansa was 8 percent lower on an annual basis in the measurement period to 1.3 billion euros. This means that the airline company performed better than expected on average. Turnover increased by 2 percent to 10.2 billion euros.
The group maintained its forecast for the gross profit margin of 5.5 to 6.5 percent this year. This corresponds to revenues between 2 billion and 2.4 billion euros. The fuel costs will be 650 million euros higher this year than a year earlier.
With the rates under pressure and the continuing slowdown in the growth of economies worldwide, Lufthansa is cutting its growth forecast. That step should help Lufthansa to better manage its prices. Among other things, at budget subsidiary Eurowings, the knife is being cut in capacity, so that this component becomes profitable again.
Lufthansa presented its results when the group’s cabin crew started a two-day strike in a call for more wages. 1300 flights were canceled for Thursday and Friday.
The trade update did not mention Lufthansa’s possible investment in his troubled Italian counterpart Alitalia. Earlier, the Germans would have indicated to the Italian government that it wants to play a more active role in the rescue. In addition, Lufthansa would like to invest 150 million, but also to delete thousands of jobs.
