Air Busan announced on July 23 that it recorded sales of 171.4 billion KRW and an operating loss of 11.1 billion KRW in the second quarter of this year. Sales decreased by 27.2% compared to the same period last year, and the company turned to an operating loss.
Cumulative sales for the first half of this year were 420.9 billion KRW, and operating profit was 29 billion KRW, down by 17.1% and 67.4%, respectively, compared to the same period last year.
The company analyzed that performance deteriorated due to sluggish demand on Japan routes, which was attributed to the spread of major earthquake rumors, heat waves, and the appreciation of the Japanese yen. Additional negative factors included aircraft losses caused by fire, and unavoidable flight reductions resulting from operational restrictions on some aircraft due to delays in overseas outsourced maintenance processes.
However, the debt ratio improved significantly, falling by 474 percentage points compared to the end of last year, due to proactive issuance of perpetual convertible bonds (CB) and a decline in exchange rates.
Air Busan explained that in the third quarter of this year, demand is expected to recover with the onset of the summer peak season, and performance will improve due to increased supply resulting from fleet normalization. The company will expand operations on popular Southeast Asian routes for the summer vacation season, including the resumption of the Busan~Cebu route, increased flights on the Busan~Kota Kinabalu and Busan~Danang routes, and irregular flights on the Busan·Incheon~Boracay routes.
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